BRITAIN has notched up its seventh successive quarter of growth, but George Osborne warned the country faced a critical moment amid a darkening picture for the global economy.
Gross Domestic Product [GDP] grew by 0.7 per cent in the third quarter, according to the Office for National Statistics; a slowdown from 0.9 per cent in the previous period.
GDP has now been growing since the start of last year but the figures also showed the performance of manufacturing in the latest quarter, with growth of just 0.4 per cent, was the weakest it has been since the first three months of 2013.
The dominant services sector, which represents nearly four-fifths of output and has led the UK out of recession, failed to keep pace with a growth surge of 1.1 per cent in the second quarter, although it still expanded by 0.7 per cent.
Britain is still expected to be the fastest-growing major world economy this year with the International Monetary Fund predicting a GDP increase of 3.2 per cent.
The chancellor said the strong growth figures showed the UK "continues to lead the pack in an increasingly uncertain global economy". But pointing to weakness in the eurozone and instability in global markets, he said "we face a critical moment for our economy" and that Britain needed to "carry on working through our economic plan that is delivering stability and security".
However, Ed Balls said for all Mr Osborne's claims the economy was fixed, most people were still not feeling the recovery. "Working people are over £1,600 a year worse off since 2010 and these figures now show a concerning slowdown in economic growth too," added the shadow chancellor.
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