UK economy grew 0.8% in May as lockdown restrictions ease further

The British economy grew 0.8% in May as lockdown restrictions were relaxed even further.

The ONS added that GDP had not returned to pre-pandemic levels, with figures showing it was 3.1 per cent lower than in February 2020.

Analysts had been expecting a economy growth of 1.5 per cent in May.

The return of customers to restaurants and vacation areas led to an increase of 37.1 percent-mainly in the hospitality and restaurant industry-on April's numbers.

Jonathan Athow, deputy national statistics officer for economic statistics for the ONS, said pubs and restaurants accounted for the "vast majority of growth" of growth in May, although hotels also experienced a marked recovery.

Jonathan Athow, Assistant National Statistician for Economic Affairs at ONS, said: 'The economy grew for the fourth consecutive month, albeit at a slower pace than seen recently."

Despite the reopening of the nonvital retail outlets many shops have had to shut altogether due to the effects of Covid.

A worldwide shortfall in microchips has resulted in the largest reduction in the automaker's production since April 2020, it said, with transportation equipment production falling by 16.5 percent in May.