In the first quarter of 2026, UK Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 0.6%, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which was more than economists had forecast. The 0.6% figure followed a revised increase of 0.2% in the fourth quarter of 2025.
All three sectors, services, production, and construction, contributed to the growth. Services, which grew by around 0.8%, was the largest contributor, followed by production (about 0.4%) and construction (around 0.3%).
For the whole 12-month period of 2025, GDP grew by an unrevised 1.4%, compared to 1% in 2024 and 0.4% in 2023.
GDP per head grew by an estimated 0.6% in the first quarter of 2026. Compared to the same quarter in 2025, GDP per head had grown by 0.9%.
The three sectors of the economy
The economy is divided into 3 sectors: services, production, and construction:
services (grew by around 0.6% in Q1 2026):
- retail (shops, supermarkets)
- hospitality (hotels, restaurants)
- finance (banks, insurance)
- healthcare (hospitals, clinics)
- education (schools, universities)
- transport (airlines, buses, trains)
- IT and technology services
- professional, scientific and technical services
production (grew by around 0.4% in Q1 2026):
- manufacturing (cars, electronics, food products)
- energy (oil, gas, electricity)
- mining and quarrying
- water supply and waste management
- agriculture (farming, crops, livestock)
- fishing and aquaculture (fish farms, shrimp farms, oyster and mussel cultivation)
construction (grew by around 0.3% in Q1 2026):
- building houses and apartments
- infrastructure (roads, bridges, railways)
- commercial buildings (offices, shopping centres)
- renovation and maintenance work
- civil engineering projects (dams, tunnels, ports)
- installation work (electrical systems, plumbing, heating)
International comparisons
- Q1 2026
The UK, at 0.6%, enjoyed the fastest GDP growth in Q1 2026. The United States (0.5%) came second, followed by Canada (0.4%), Germany (0.3%), Italy (0.2%), and France (0.0%). Japan has not published its figures yet.
- Whole year 2025
The US, at 2.1%, grew the fastest in 2025, followed by Canada (1.7%), the UK (1.4%), Japan (1.2%), France (0.9%), Italy (0.7%), and Germany (0.3%).
Britain’s Chancellor (Finance Minister) Rachel Reeves said that these latest figures show that the government has “the right economic plan.” She also warned that a Labour leadership contest could significantly undermine economic growth.
