Britain's gross domestic product (GDP) growth was flat in the last quarter of 2019 compared with the previous quarter, unrevised from the first quarterly estimate, according to data released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on Tuesday.
Compared with the same period in 2018, the British economy rose by 1.1 percent in the final three months of the year, the ONS said.
Meanwhile, in terms of the whole-year economic performance, the British economy increased by 1.4 percent in 2019, higher than the increase of 1.3 percent in 2018.
"The path of British GDP growth has been particularly volatile throughout 2019, in part reflecting changes in the timing of activity related to the British original planned exit dates from the European Union," said the ONS.
"Looking through this volatility, the underlying picture is one in which there was a slowing in the British economy," said the ONS, adding that "domestic and global uncertainties are likely explanations for the loss in momentum."
Data also revealed that government consumption grew by 3.5 percent year on year in 2019, hitting its largest increase since 2005, driven by the central government's spending in a number of areas, including health, education and defence.
Speaking of the impact of the coronavirus outbreak, the ONS said "the latest independent forecasts for the British economy show that there is an expectation of a pronounced effect in Quarter 2, with the new consensus for a quarterly fall in GDP of 0.3 percent."
Source: Xinhua |
