The United Kingdom Economy It registered unexpectedly solid growth in March, promoting the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to expand 0.6% in the first quarter of 2025, as reported by the National Statistics Office (ONS). The data exceeded both the forecasts of the Bank of England and the expectations of the economists consulted by Reuters, which projected 0.6%.
He Monthly growth in March was 0.2%challenging stagnation forecasts. This is the greatest increase in production in a year. According to the ONS, the impulse mainly came from the services sector, but there was also a significant recovery in industrial production, along with a strong rebound in business investment.
The Minister of Finance, Rachel Reeves, celebrated the figures: “Today’s growth figures show the strength and potential of the British economy. In the first three months of the year, the British economy has grown faster than that of the United States, Canada, France, Italy and Germany. ”
The Government of Prime Minister Keir Starmer seeks to revitalize the economy through an investment agenda in infrastructure and structural reforms to promote growth. However, the Bank of England warned that this rebound could be transitory and forecast a growth of 1% by 2025, with a 1.5% limited acceleration by 2027.
Despite the context of reforms that include increases in Employment taxes and minimum salarycompanies warned about possible negative impacts. However, British consumers seem to resist challenges: recent data show an increase in their expense during March and April, indicating confidence in the economy.
The euro zone grows less than expected, but employment remains firm
In parallel, The economy of the euro zone registered a 0.3% growth in the first quarter of 2025, According to Eurostat data, below the 0.4% initially estimated. Even so, the data represents an improvement with respect to the growth of 0.1% of the previous quarter, thanks to a modest industrial expansion and an improvement in the labor market.
Interannual comparison, The Block GDP grew 1.2%, in line with the potential growth estimated by the European Central Bank (ECB). Although the Eurozone has had a lower performance than that of the United States in recent years, the data of the first quarter exceeds the contraction of 0.3% registered by the US economy, which was beaten by the increase in imports after the application of tariffs driven by President Donald Trump.
The labor market was especially resilient: employment grew by 0.3% quarterly, the greatest advance in a year, and unemployment remains at historically low levels. This performance has partially dissipated the fears of mass dismissals in the face of moderate economic growth.
Among the main economies of the block, Spain led growth with 0.6%, followed by Italy (0.3%), Germany (0.2%) and France (0.1%).
Source: Ambito
