'A sobering first quarter' ahead: UK GDP falls 2.9% in January

The fall, which comes one month after a 1.2% uptick in economic growth in December, was 9% below levels last seen before the first lockdown in February last year, and 4% below the initial recovery peak in October 2020. The services sector dealt the biggest blow to UK GDP having fallen by 3.5% as a direct result of the lockdown. Growth for the sector was down 10.2% compared to February last year and 4.9% below levels seen in October. Meanwhile, the production sector fell for the first time in eight months at 1.5%. This was 5% below its level in February 2020. In contrast, constructi...