Commenting on the latest ONS GDP data Barret Kupelian, Chief Economist at PwC, says:
“When Westminster holds its breath, so does the high street. Today’s data show that in the three months to October, in the lead up to the Budget, the economy shrank by 0.1%, with services flat and both production and construction in reverse.
“Some of this weakness still reflects the cyber-attack on Jaguar Land Rover, which knocked car output earlier in the autumn, but the bigger story is that speculation around the Autumn Budget kept households and businesses in wait-and-see mode. Given the timing of the Budget, November’s GDP print is likely to look similarly subdued before any post-Budget effects start to show up.”
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