Growth

As ever, figures provided by the ONS have had to be revised.

This time the figures for growth in Q2 2010 have been revised upwards, from 1.1% to 1.2%. This is the fastest quarterly growth in the UK since 1999. However, the economy had contracted by more than 6% before this.

A large part of this growth is made up of inventory building by companies, therefore it is presumed not necessarily to be sustainable.

Ed Balls, a Labour leadership candidate, used the revised figures to warn of an economic hurricane hitting the UK if the government cuts public expenditure.

The government, on the other hand, notes that the improved growth figures give them a sound base from which to cut excess public expenditure.

Doubtless both are right, but both will also be proven wrong.

Such is the nature of economics and politics!