// UK economy grew faster than expected during second quarter
// UK gross domestic product increased by 5.5% during the period
New research has shown that the UK economy has grown faster than expected in the second quarter, thanks to a stronger performance from the healthcare sector.
UK gross domestic product increased by 5.5 per cent in the second quarter, after being revised up from the first estimate of a 4.8 per cent increase, according to the ONS.
This means the economy is now 3.3 per cent below its level in the fourth quarter of 2019, before the pandemic struck, up from the previous estimate of 4.4 per cent below.
READ MORE: UK economy grows 4.8% in second quarter post-lockdown
The latest data showed “health services and the arts performing better than initially thought”, ONS deputy national statistician for economic statistics, Jonathan Athow said.
The ONS also revised up the UK economic growth by 0.5 percentage points in the third quarter last year. The revised figures also show households have been saving less in recent years than previously thought.
A strong rise in household spending between April and June meant the household savings ratio decreased to 11.7 per cent, compared with 18.4 per cent in the first quarter — though this was still the second-highest level since records began in 1963, but lower than 20 per cent of initial estimates.
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