Monthly GDP rose by 0.8 per cent in January

ONS data published this morning shows that monthly GDP rose by 0.8% in January 2022.

Kitty Ussher, chief economist at the Institute of Directors, said the news could offer some relief to “business leaders concerned about how the Ukraine crisis may impact them.”

“We would expect this trend to continue into February,” she explained, adding: “Looking forwards the key economic question is whether those consumers that still have discretionary spending power are more pleased about the retreat of the virus than they are concerned about the financial impact of the grim news from Ukraine.”

Alpesh Paleja, lead economist at the CBI also urged caution, explaining that: “Omicron continued to weigh on growth at the start of the year. While the economy has recovered since, it’s clear that causes for concern are growing quickly. Conflict in Ukraine is putting considerable pressure on energy and commodity prices, which, if sustained, will push inflation even higher than expected. The need to press ahead with deploying new power generation through renewables, nuclear and increasing storage capacity, remains acute.

“Beyond the immediate challenges we face, urgent action is needed to push the UK onto a higher growth trajectory. The priority must be a relentless focus on investment-led growth, through introducing a permanent replacement for the super-deduction, and reforming the tax system to incentivise green capital spending,” she went on.

General secretary of the Trade Unions Congress, Frances O’Grady, suggested that the figures did not reflect some of the issues yet to come, explaining: “Our economy grows best when working people get more pounds their pocket to go out and spend. But real wages are falling, prices are surging and the illegal war in Ukraine is pushing us deeper into a cost of living crisis.

“Without government action, families will get poorer, spending will fall, and our economy will run into trouble.

“The Chancellor must come forward with a plan to get wages rising at the spring statement. And he must get urgent help to families and businesses hit by soaring energy costs.”