UK Opens 2022 With Economic Rebound as Restrictions Ease

Source: Office for National Statistics

The UK economy opened the year with a rebound, as services posted growth with consumers returning to food and beverage activities. EWU is up 1.23% premarket.

• The gross domestic product grew by 0.8% in January, following the 0.2% in December when restrictions were in place due to the COVID-19 Omicron variant.
• All sectors posted growth during the month, with construction up 1.1%, services up 0.8%, and production up 0.7%.
• Consumer-facing services climbed by 1.7%, led mostly by food and beverage activities which expanded by 6.8%. The rest of the services jumped by 0.6%.
• Services have increased 1.3% above the levels seen prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, with consumer-facing services 6.8% lower than pre-pandemic levels and others 3.4% above.
• The construction sector is now 1.4% higher than the pre-pandemic level, while production is 2.0% lower.