Advertisement:
Category: Economy Date: 12/22/2011
Growth in the UK economy during the third quarter of the year has been revised upwards from 0.5% to 0.6%.
The revision has been made by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), and was helped by positive performance in the construction and service sectors.
The ONS can downgrade or upgrade its estimates for growth as it receives more relevant data.
It has also changed its estimate for the second quarter of the year, with the slim 0.1% upturn revised to zero, meaning the economy effectively stood still from April to June.
The figures confirm that any recovery in the economy will be fragile and drawn out.
Yesterday's minutes from the Bank of England's monthly Monetary Policy Committee )MPC) revealed that a further round of quantitative easing (QE) could be called upon early next year to boost the economy.
The initiative, which currently totals £275 billion, sees money used to buy bonds from banks and other businesses, in a bid to get money flowing back into their economy
Minutes showed that some members of the MPC felt that another enlargement of the QE programme might soon be necessary.
"Some members continued to note that the balance of risks to inflation in the
November Inflation Report projections meant that a further expansion of the asset purchase programme might well become warranted in due course," it said.
Another injection of funds into the economy could come early next year, and the British Chambers of Commerce said it would support such a move.
Find the best savings rates for you - Compare savings accounts
Disclaimer: Information is correct as of the date of publication (shown at the top of this article). Any products featured may be withdrawn by their provider or changed at anytime.