Office for National Statistics

UK economy grew by 0.5%

The UK economy has expanded by 0.5 percent in the last three months of 2015, according to the Office for National Statistics. This takes the annual rate of growth in 2015 to 2.2 percent. Output increased in two of the main industrial groupings within the economy, services and agriculture whilst construction decreased.…

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50% rise in pets given as gifts

A shocking 1.3 million people have received pets as presents in 2015 – a 50 percent increase since 2012, a new report by the PDSA has shown.* The vet charity urges people not to give pets as surprise gifts this Christmas, as findings from its annual PAW Report** highlighted that a lack of…

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UK Economy continues to grow

  The UK economy grew by 0.5 percent between July and September, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Although continuing to grow, the rate was slower than the previous quarter. The growth rate was also lower than predicted. In the second quarter of the year, the economy has…

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UK GDP growth has increased in the second quarter

The UK recovery is well under-way with gross domestic product (GDP) per head increasing after seven years according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Growth measured at 0.7 percent in the second quarter of 2015, meaning a recovery from 0.4 percent from the first three months of the year.…

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Retail sales show promising increase for May

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has released figures showing a 1.9 per cent year-on-year increase in sales in the retail sector for May – the highest level on record since 2003. In addition, the increase from April to May of this year was 2.1 per cent for sales in…

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ONS releases flat November retail sales figures

Following statistics from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has also released damning figures in the lead up to the festive season. It was presumed that November would show an increase in sales after October’s shock 0.8 per cent fall. But figures released by…

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Retail sales surprisingly strong in August

Figures released today by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) concerning retail sales in August have proved a pleasant surprise, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC). The data shows that the total value of sales (non-seasonally-adjusted) was up 3.4 per cent on August 2011; an improvement on July. The…

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Could rise in retail sales signal a stronger UK economy?

Better-than-forecasted sales figures have helped to raise hopes that the UK’s recession may not be as deep as first feared. According to figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), sales volumes in July rose by 0.3 per cent and were up 2.8 per cent from a year earlier. ONS…

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Could rise in retail sales signal a stronger UK economy?

Better-than-forecasted sales figures have helped to raise hopes that the UK’s recession may not be as deep as first feared. According to figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), sales volumes in July rose by 0.3 per cent and were up 2.8 per cent from a year earlier. ONS…

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Rain-hit retailers to thank for inflation fall

The price-cutting by retailers has caused the Consumer Price Inflation (CPI) to fall to its lowest level for two and a half years. Government figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) put CPI at 2.4 per cent, which is down from 2.8 per cent in May. The largest downward…

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