UK economy grows by 1.9% in 2013, the fastest rate since 2007, says ONS report

The UK economy grew by 0.7% in Q4, 2013, with the annual growth rate rising to 1.9%, the UK's fastest annual rate of growth since 2007, figures released today by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) have revealed.

According to the statistical reports provided by the ONS, the GDP for Q4 2013 also increased by 2.8% compared to the same quarter a year ago, whereas the yearly GDP is estimated to have grown by 1.9% between 2012 and 2013. Although this is still a fairly modest growth, it's nevertheless a positive one, compared to the significant drop recorded during the economic downturn, when GDP decreased by 7.2% between Q1 2008 and Q2 — Q3 2009.

Figures obtained from the ONS report suggest that the services sector played a major part in the overall recovery, since it grew by 0.8% in Q3 2013. The agriculture and production sectors have also recorded some significant growth levels (0.5% and 0.7%, respectively), whereas the construction sector recorded a small decrease, of 0.3%. The manufacturing sector was also on a positive trend, increasing by 0.9% over the same time frame.

The Office for National Statistics also pointed out that the Index of Services increased by 2.6% in November 2013 compared with November 2012. Over this time interval, business services & finance increased by 3.2%, distribution, hotels & restaurants increased by 4.4%, government & other services increased by 1.1% and transport, storage & communication increased by 1.9%.

Furthermore, the latest Index of Services estimates show that output increased by 0.4% between October 2013 and November 2013, following an increase of 0.1% between September 2013 and October 2013.