In the fourth quarter of 2010 the economy of Great Britain shrank by 0.5% as compared to the previous quarter. This news was revealed in the preliminary report on the GDP released by the Office of National Statistics. Last time the British GDP reduced was in the third quarter of 2009. The report reads about the GDP fall having been caused mainly by bad weather conditions: in December the activity of many British real estate agencies was paralyzed by heavy snowfalls. The Office of National Statistics representatives emphasize that it was rough weather that pushed the GDP down by 0.5%.
According to the Guardian, the report came as a surprise to British experts. They had supposed that the national GDP growth would be 0.1 – 0.7%.
In comparison with the fourth quarter of 2009, the British GDP rose by 1.7%.
This week several countries are to publish the preliminary data on the GDP for the fourth quarter and the year. Thus, the report of the USA, the world’s largest economy, is slated for January 26. As it was announced earlier, the GDP of Germany grew by 3.6% in 2010, which is a national record since the FRG and GDR signed the Unification Treaty. China’s gross domestic product increased by 10.3%.
