British exports to the EU have partially recovered in February after a sharp decline in January.
Official figures show exports to the EU jumped 46.6%, although that followed January’s 42% slump as firms struggled with new trade rules.
Imports from the EU, too, picked up, albeit by a weaker 7.3%, after a January fall of 29.7%.
Other figures from the Office for National Statistics showed the UK economy grew by 0.4% in February.
However, the ONS said that the economy was 7.8% smaller than a year earlier, before the impact of the pandemic.
An ONS spokesperson said: “The economy showed some improvement in February after the large falls seen at the start of the year but remains around 8% below its pre-pandemic level,
“Exports to the EU recovered significantly from their January fall, though still remain below 2020 levels. However, imports from the EU are yet to significantly rebound, with a number of issues hampering trade.”
Sarah Hewin, from Standard Chartered Bank, said the British economy is improving, she said: “Confidence does seem to be picking up as vaccinations spreading. We know households have built up their savings in many cases during lockdown. As lockdown restrictions are eased people are going to be able to go out and spend those savings and that will be a big boost to the economy.
“As we saw from the scenes yesterday people are keen to get out and spend when they can. There will be more opportunities for travelling and going on holiday and spending in restaurants and pubs will see people spending to go out and enjoy themselves.”
Editor-in-Chief | Carl D. Pearson has been involved in British politics and media from an early age, with the key knowledge of what it takes to run a news organisation for the 21st century. Mr Pearson, as Editor-in-chief, is responsible for supervising the daily tasks of publishing media and content to UNN’s website and various platforms.
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