Don’t be fooled by the UK economy’s October bounceback

Improvement was on the cards after a grim September hit by the royal funeral. Growth of 0.5 per cent was better than expected. But the chancellor is right to warn of a hard road ahead, argues James Moore

The UK economy grew in October but inflation is still far too high (EPA)

If only we could celebrate the Office for National Statistics (ONS) saying the economy grew by a handy 0.5 per cent in October – compared to the previous month – as a winter warmer, with large parts of the country blanketed by snow.

Sadly, I’m afraid we can’t.

October’s performance was welcome, for sure. However, a rebound was expected after a grim September, during which the royal funeral did an even better job than the snow at bringing UK plc to a juddering halt. As a result of it, and other headwinds, the economy contracted by 0.6 per cent.