The UK is pigging out on imports
Despite fears that the global economy is about to hit the buffers, the UK economy has steamed ahead of predictions over the last economic quarter. The economy grew by 0.6 percent in the fourth quarter of 2015, higher than the previous estimate of 0.5 percent. The sterling economic news is also reflected in a booming jobs market.
The figures, which have been collated by the Office of National Statistics, mean that the economy grew by 2.3 percent for the whole of 2015.
It had been previously predicted that the economy would grow by only 2.2 percent.
Deficit
It was also revealed that the current account deficit widened to a record level, meaning that the UK imported much more than it exported.
The deficit in the three months to December was £32.7bn, the equivalent of seven percent of GDP, said the ONS.
For the whole of 2015, the deficit came to £96.2bn or 5.2 percent of GDP. Both figures were the highest since official records began in 1948.
Robert joined the HRreview editorial team in October 2015. After graduating from the University of Salford in 2009 with a BA in Politics, Robert has spent several years working in print and online journalism in Manchester and London. In the past he has been part of editorial teams at Flux Magazine, Mondo*Arc Magazine and The Marine Professional.
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