[
The UK economy has grown for the second month in a row, raising hopes that it is on its way out of recession.
The economy grew by 0.1 per cent in February, following growth of 0.3 per cent in January, according to the Office for National Statistics.
This is an early estimate, but signals how the UK, which entered recession at the end of 2023, is faring.
The production sector was the main contributor to economic growth in the month, with output growing by 1.1 per cent in February.
The services sector grew by 0.1 per cent but construction was shrank 1.9 per cent.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said: “These figures are a welcome sign that the economy is turning a corner, and we can build on this progress if we stick to our plan.”
Liz McKeown, ONS director of economic statistics, said the economy “grew slightly” in February with “widespread growth across manufacturing, particularly in the car sector”.
She said: “Services also grew a little with public transport and haulage, and telecommunications having strong months.
“Partially offsetting this there were notable falls across construction as the wet weather hampered many building projects.”
The ONS revised upwards its estimate for January from 0.2 per cent to 0.3 per cent.
Paul Dales, chief UK economist at Capital Economics, a research consultancy, said an economic recovery is “underway” but “we doubt it will be strong enough to prevent inflation and interest rates from falling much further as appears to be happening in the US”.
He said the Bank of England may cut interest rates, which are at 5.25 per cent, in June, and reduce them to 3 per cent next year – rather than 4 per cent as markets expect.
