PwC comments on the latest ONS GDP figures - October 2026

Commenting on the Office of National Statistics GDP data for August 2026, Jake Finney, Senior Economist at PwC, says:

“The latest GDP figures are encouraging, with the economy growing by 0.7% in the three months to August, its strongest growth rate since May. On its current trajectory, the UK is likely to record growth comfortably above 1% this year, which would probably be enough to make it the second-fastest-growing economy in the G7.

“The UK’s growth performance has been a bright spot amid a less impressive run of economic news following events in the Middle East. Business investment has been an important driver, particularly spending on ICT hardware, likely linked to the build-out of AI infrastructure. The UK still lags the US in both the scale of that investment and the boost it provides to growth, but it is making progress and remains ahead of many of its European peers.

“However, stronger-than-expected growth this year is unlikely to make a huge difference going into the Autumn Budget. What matters most for the Chancellor’s fiscal headroom is the OBR’s view of the economy towards the end of the forecast horizon, rather than growth in the here and now. A meaningful improvement would require the OBR to take a more optimistic view of the UK’s underlying growth potential, through either a larger workforce or stronger productivity.”