Official data released on Thursday revealed that the UK economy has plunged into recession after experiencing two consecutive quarters of negative economic growth in the latter part of 2023.
According to the Office for National Statistics, gross domestic product (GDP) contracted by 0.3 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2023, following a 0.1 per cent decline in the previous three months, thereby meeting the technical definition of a recession.
The BBC explains that a country is considered to be in a state of recession when its GDP declines for two successive three-month periods, or quarters.
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This economic downturn is a setback for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who had pledged to foster economic growth as one of his key objectives in January 2023.
This isn’t the first time the UK has faced recessionary pressures. In 2020, the economy entered a recession amid the COVID-19 pandemic, contracting by a staggering 20.4 per cent in the second quarter during nationwide lockdowns.
The Office for National Statistics had then declared it as the most severe on record.
Adding to the economic woes, official data from December 2023 showed an unexpected shrinkage in the UK’s economy during the third quarter, sparking concerns of a potential recession ahead of an upcoming election scheduled for the year 2024.
The Office for National Statistics reported a 0.1 per cent contraction in GDP between July and September, revised down from a prior estimate of zero growth.