UK economy failed to grow in January in blow for Starmer - The figures follow warnings that inflation could rise at the end of the year due to the US-Israeli war on Iran

Britain should rejoin the European Union, Sir Sadiq Khan has said. The London Mayor put himself at the helm of calls for the UK to ditch Brexit and fully rebuild ties with the European bloc. He tore into the “humongous” damage wreaked on Britain from splintering away from the EU.

The GDP in the UK stalled 0% m/m in January 2026, following a 0.1% rise in December, and compared to forecasts of a 0.2% gain. On a yearly basis, the economy remains 0.8% larger than in January 2025,

The UK’s Spring Forecast projected modest growth, easing inflation, and improving public finances—but fresh uncertainty from the US-Iran conflict and rising energy prices may already have thrown those forecasts off course,

Economists had been expecting gross domestic product to add 0.2%.

The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee has held UK interest rates at 3.75% as conflict in the Middle East forces the committee to delay cuts.

The price of Brent crude was back above $100 on Friday morning, and it’s already feeding through into prices at the pumps. Suddenly, at dinner tables around the UK, everyone is talking about the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world’s oil passes.

The UK economy grew by 0.2% in the three months to January but with zero growth that month, according to official figures, as the prospects ahead are clouded by uncertainty due to the effects of the Middle East war.

Britain's economy stagnated unexpectedly in January and expanded only weakly in preceding months, underlining investor concerns about its vulnerability to the economic fallout from the war

Despite fears that AI could wipe out millions of jobs, the Chancellor is set to outline how her plan will boost employment.