Market Update: UK GDP Stable, While Trade Deficit Widens

Final GDP: The UK gross domestic product (GDP) in volume terms was estimated to have increased by 0.6% between Q2 (Apr to June) 2018 and Q3 (July to Sept) 2018, unrevised from the first quarterly estimate of GDP. GDP was estimated to have increased by 1.8% between 2016 and 2017, revised upwards by 0.1 percentage points from the previous estimate.

Current Account: The UK’s current account deficit widened by £6.6 billion to £26.5 billion in Q3 (July to Sept) 2018, or 4.9% of gross domestic product (GDP) – the largest deficit recorded since Q3 2016 in both value and percentage of GDP terms.

All of the main components contributed to the worsening current account balance, with worsening primary income, trade and secondary income balances.