The UK economy experienced marginal growth in April as expected, thanks to the contributions of the retail and film industries, despite contractions in manufacturing and construction sectors,

according to data released on Wednesday. The figures indicated slow growth rather than a recession.

The Office for National Statistics reported that the British economy grew by 0.2% month-on-month in April, in line with the consensus among economists surveyed by Reuters.

Financial markets did not show significant immediate reactions to the figures, unlike recent labor market and inflation data, which fueled expectations of higher interest rates from the Bank of England.

The data released on Wednesday aligns with business surveys, indicating weak activity but dismissing the earlier predictions of a recession just a few months ago.

Over the three months leading up to April, the UK economy expanded by a mere 0.1%, a growth trajectory considered to be low by the British Chambers of Commerce.

Samuel Tombs, Chief UK Economist at consultancy Pantheon Macroeconomics, commented, "Looking ahead, we continue to expect GDP in Q2 as a whole to be unchanged from Q1." He further added, "Public sector strikes have continued to rumble on, and the lost working day for the King's coronation probably inflicted a 0.2 percentage point blow to GDP in May."

According to the Office for National Statistics, the health sector was the main contributor to the contraction in growth in April due to four days of junior doctor strikes.

In response to the figures, Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt stated that the government would adhere to its plan to reduce inflation by half this year.

The Office for National Statistics revealed that in April, the economy stood 0.3% above its pre-pandemic level of February 2020.

The services sector witnessed a 0.3% increase in output during the month, primarily driven by the wholesale and retail trade. Information and communications also contributed significantly to growth, with the film and TV industry emerging as a notable highlight.

However, manufacturing output declined by 0.3%, and the construction sector unexpectedly contracted by 0.6%, according to the data. Photo by Jim Goldsmith, Wikimedia commons.