Economy

Scotland’s economy experienced a sluggish start to 2026, with onshore GDP growing by just 0.1% in the first quarter, falling significantly behind the UK's overall 0.6% expansion, according to statistics announced by the Chief Statistician. Despite consecutive economic contractions in January a

UK CPI inflation slowed to 2.8% in April, down from 3.3% in March, marking its lowest level since March 2025.

Scottish private sector firms recorded a fresh decline in business activity at the start of the second quarter, the latest Royal Bank of Scotland Growth Tracker has revealed. The headline Royal Bank of Scotland Business Activity Index – a seasonally adjusted index that measures the month-on-mo

Net borrowing of mortgage debt by individuals increased to £6.2 billion in March, from £5.2bn in February, above the previous 6-month average of £4.9bn, according to The Bank of England's latest Money and Credit release covering March 2026 The data points to a pickup in lending act

Scotland’s economy experienced a modest expansion in the three months to February 2026, with onshore GDP rising by 0.2%. This followed a marginal increase of 0.1% in the preceding three-month period ending in January. While monthly figures for February showed slight growth of 0.1%, this repres

UK inflation rose to 3.3% in the year to March, up from 3% in February, as the conflict in the Middle East triggered the largest monthly jump in petrol and diesel prices in nearly three years. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the rise was "largely due to increased fuel prices", with air

Recent data has remained positive for the Scottish economy, but the outlook for future growth is being dampened by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, according to the Fraser of Allander Institute. In its latest Quarterly Economic Commentary, the Institute has downgraded its 2026 growth forecas

Chancellor Rachel Reeves is convening a summit with the heads of UK banks this Wednesday to address the economic fallout from the war in Iran. The Chancellor has invited executives from Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, NatWest, Santander UK and Nationwide to the meeting, which will include figures such as Na

Retail sales in Scotland fell sharply in March as anxious consumers reined in spending amid growing concerns over the Middle East crisis and the threat of rising energy prices and inflation.

The UK economy grew by a stronger-than-expected 0.5% in February, according to official figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), significantly outpacing the 0.1% forecast by economists.

The United Kingdom faces the steepest economic hit from the Iran war among the world's advanced economies, according to the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) latest World Economic Outlook. The IMF has revised its forecast for UK growth this year down to 0.8%, from the 1.3% predicted in January bef

The UK construction sector remained in contraction during March 2026, with the latest S&P Global UK Construction Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) rising marginally to 45.6 from 44.5 in February, though still below the neutral 50.0 threshold for the fifteenth consecutive month.

Global markets staged a sharp recovery on Wednesday after Donald Trump announced a two-week ceasefire with Iran, stepping back from what had been an extraordinarily dramatic ultimatum. Just hours earlier, the US President had warned that "a whole civilisation will die tonight" unless Tehran reached

Scotland's onshore GDP showed no growth in the three months to January 2026, according to statistics released by the Chief Statistician. This marks a decline from the 0.1% growth recorded in the three months to December 2025, and 0.4% in the three months to November 2025.

UK inflation held steady at 3% in February, but economists are warning that the relative calm is unlikely to last, as the ripple effects of the Middle East conflict begin to reshape the economic outlook.