The UK economy has bounced back strongly, but it is a long way from fully recovered, next week’s numbers will show.
Thursday’s figures will show that real GDP jumped by over 15 per cent in the third quarter. That’s a record rise, following the second-quarter's record fall. However, the numbers will also show that the pace of the recovery has slowed recently, partly as a result of localised lockdowns, and that GDP is still around 8 per cent lower than it was before the pandemic.
What’s more, this upturn isn’t enough to strengthen the labour market much. Tuesday’s numbers could show that while employment stabilised last month, it is still over 650,000 lower than before the pandemic. And most economists expect it to fall further in coming months.