The UK economy grew faster than initially estimated during the second quarter, supported by stronger household finances and a sharp rise in business investment.
The improved figures could offer some encouragement to the government as it prepares for the upcoming October budget.
UK GDP Growth Revised Higher
Britain’s economic output expanded by 0.5% between April and June, according to data released by the Office for National Statistics on Wednesday.
The figure was slightly stronger than the preliminary estimate of 0.4% GDP growth.
Economists had expected the original 0.4% reading to remain unchanged.
The latest revision therefore suggests that the UK economy performed somewhat better than previously thought during the second quarter.
UK Leads G7 Growth in First Half of 2026
The ONS data also showed that Britain recorded the strongest economic growth among the Group of Seven major advanced economies during the first half of 2026.
The figures provide a more positive picture of UK economic activity following a period of uncertainty surrounding inflation, interest rates and consumer spending.
Household Disposable Income Rises
Household finances also improved significantly during the quarter.
Real household disposable income per person increased by 1.0% quarter-on-quarter in the three months through June.
That represented the strongest increase since the final quarter of 2024.
It also marked a substantial improvement from the 0.8% decline recorded during the first quarter.
Higher disposable income could help support consumer spending if the trend continues.
Business Investment Jumps
Business investment was another major positive in the latest economic data.
The ONS revised annual business investment growth for the second quarter sharply higher to 5.2%.
The initial estimate had indicated growth of only 0.8%.
The significant upward revision points to stronger investment activity among UK businesses than previously reported.
UK Current Account Deficit Narrows
Separate balance-of-payments figures also delivered a better-than-expected result.
Britain recorded a £19.9 billion ($26.4 billion) current account deficit during the second quarter.
Economists had expected a larger shortfall of approximately £24.7 billion.
Excluding trade in precious metals, the current account deficit narrowed to 1.4% of UK economic output.
That was the smallest deficit by this measure in five years, helped in part by strong growth in UK services exports.
Overall, the revised figures suggest that the UK economy entered the second half of 2026 with stronger momentum than initially estimated, supported by improving household incomes, business investment and external trade performance.
