Please sir, the weather shrank my economy!
Posted by David Baggaley on 27 Jan 2011 | Tagged as: Automotive, Engineering, Manufacturing, UK economy
Adverse weather conditions had a major impact on the UK economy in the last quarter, according to media pundits and economists.
Why has snow hit the economy so badly this winter? asked the BBC’s Andre Reuben and in some sectors it was easy to see how. Utilities enjoyed a bumper back end to 2010 as consumers turned up the heating to contend with the biting cold, while construction and retail were adversely affected by the snow.
So shopper stayed home, building work ground to a halt and there was a 10 per cent fall in petrol sales as people stayed home ratehr than contend with chaos on the raods.
Even the part of the Office for National Statistics (ONS) that calculates the official growth figures for the economy had to postpone its Christmas party because of the weather, and will not be holding it until April.
But, while the economy as a whole shrank by 0.5 per cent, manufacturing saw growth of almost 1.5 per cent in the last quarter with exports and the automotive sector leading the resurgence.
The figures were released as leading indiustry figure met with government ministers at the Advanced Manufacturing Growth Summit to discuss how to promote UK manufacturing excellence, challenge perceptions of the industry and dispel the belief that Britain does not produce goods.
“There is a common misconception that there is no manufacturing in the UK, yet we are one of the largest manufacturers in the world…contributing some 18 per cent GDP, said one participant at the summit.
Time for manufacturing to come in from the cold?
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