UK GDP: 2026 Schedule, Dates and What to Expect

UK GDP is the official measure of the value of everything the British economy produces, published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Unusually among large economies, the UK publishes an estimate every month as well as every quarter, which makes it one of the most closely watched growth indicators in Europe. The next release is on Friday, September 11, 2026 at 2:00 am ET, which is 7:00 am in London. Full schedule and background: UK GDP report dates. Every date on this page can be added to your own diary through the ICS and Google Calendar feed attached to this page, so each new estimate appears automatically as the ONS confirms it.

This page lists every scheduled monthly GDP release the ONS has published dates for, explains how the figures are built, what the headline numbers mean, and how currency, bond and equity markets have tended to respond. GDP stands for gross domestic product: the total output of goods and services produced in the country over a period, measured after stripping out the effect of price rises when quoted in “real” terms.

2026 and 2027 UK GDP release schedule

The ONS publishes monthly GDP at 7:00 am London time, usually on a Thursday or Friday around the middle of the month, roughly six weeks after the month being measured. The table below lists every confirmed date on the ONS release calendar. Times shift between BST (British Summer Time) and GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) as the clocks change, so the equivalent time in New York moves between 2:00 am ET and 2:00 am ET respectively during the weeks when the two regions change clocks on different dates.

Dates beyond the next few months can move by a day or two when the ONS reworks its calendar. The authoritative list is the ONS release calendar, which confirms each release at least four weeks ahead.

What is UK GDP?

Gross domestic product measures the value of goods and services produced within the UK. The ONS publishes it in real terms, meaning inflation has been removed, so a rise in GDP reflects more output rather than higher prices. When commentators say the UK economy “grew by 0.3%”, they normally mean real GDP rose by that amount compared with the previous period.

The monthly estimate is the fast-moving version. It tells you how output changed in a single month against the month before, and it also gives a three-month-on-three-month growth rate, which smooths out weather, strikes, sporting events and one-off closures. The ONS publishes the three-month figure prominently because a single month of UK data is volatile and easily distorted.

Alongside the monthly estimate, the ONS publishes quarterly national accounts. The first quarterly estimate arrives around six weeks after the quarter ends and coincides with a monthly release; a fuller quarterly national accounts release follows later with the spending breakdown, household saving and business investment. Two consecutive quarters of falling real GDP is the common working definition of a technical recession, although the Bank of England and most economists look at a wider set of indicators before using the word.

Monthly GDP also comes with a sector split: services, which make up roughly four fifths of UK output, production (manufacturing, mining, energy and water) and construction. Because services dominate, the services number usually decides the headline. The ONS additionally publishes “consumer-facing services”, covering retail, hospitality and similar activities, which is the closest monthly read on how households are actually spending.

How is UK GDP calculated?

The monthly estimate is built from the output approach: the ONS collects turnover and volume data from thousands of businesses through its monthly business survey, adds administrative data such as VAT returns, retail sales, energy output and public sector activity, deflates the values to strip out price changes, and weights each industry by its share of the economy. Quarterly national accounts then balance three independent measures of the same total, output, expenditure and income, into a single reconciled figure.

Revisions are a normal part of the process rather than a sign of error. Each monthly release usually reopens the two preceding months for revision as more survey responses arrive, and annual balancing can change several years of history. The ONS has noted that the mean absolute revision between the first quarterly GDP estimate and the same quarter measured three years later is around 0.28 percentage points, which is why single early readings should be treated as provisional.

Methodology changes also matter. In its annual Blue Book exercise the ONS incorporates improved sources and new classifications, which can lift or lower the whole growth path. In 2026, for example, the ONS revised annual GDP growth for 2025 to 1.3% from 1.4% following methodological improvements and new survey and administrative information.

What time is UK GDP released and where?

The monthly GDP bulletin is published at 7:00 am London time, which is 2:00 am ET in New York, 3:00 pm in Tokyo and 8:00 am in Frankfurt and Paris. That places it before the London equity open at 8:00 am and inside the busiest hours of gilt and sterling trading, so the first reaction shows up in the pound and in short-dated UK government bonds well before US markets wake up.

The release goes to everyone at once on the ONS website. UK statistics operate under a strict pre-release regime: a very small number of named officials, including ministers and the Bank of England, may see the figures shortly before publication under the Code of Practice for Statistics, but no market participant gets early access. The bulletin and full data tables appear at ONS gross domestic product, and the calendar entry for each date sits on the ONS release calendar.

Each monthly bulletin gives the reference month for the first time and reopens the previous two months for revision. A release published in September 2026 therefore covers July 2026 activity, and a release published in October 2026 covers August 2026.

Recent UK GDP readings

The table below shows recently published growth rates. The three-month-on-three-month rate is the figure the ONS and the Bank of England lean on most, because single months in UK data are noisy.

Source: ONS monthly GDP bulletins and the first quarterly estimate for January to March 2026. Quarterly real GDP rose 0.6% in the first quarter of 2026 after a revised 0.1% in the fourth quarter of 2025, and annual growth for 2025 was revised to 1.3%. Figures are revised in later vintages, so always check the current ONS bulletin for the live number.

Two features of the 2026 data recur in the sector detail. Services have carried most of the growth, with professional, scientific and technical activities and information and communication among the strongest subsectors, while construction has swung sharply from month to month. Because construction is a small share of output, even large percentage moves there shift the headline by only a fraction of a point.

How do markets react to UK GDP?

The immediate reaction happens in three places. Sterling moves first: stronger than expected growth typically lifts the pound against the dollar and the euro, because it reduces the case for the Bank of England to cut interest rates quickly. Weaker growth tends to push the pound down and to lift gilt prices, which pulls their yields lower, since traders price in earlier or deeper rate cuts. Basis points, or bp, are hundredths of a percentage point, so a 10bp fall in the two-year gilt yield is a move of 0.10 percentage points.

Second, UK equities react unevenly. The FTSE 100 earns most of its revenue abroad, so a weaker pound can support the index even on disappointing domestic data. The FTSE 250, which is more domestically exposed, tends to track the UK growth story more closely, as do UK housebuilders, retailers and banks.

Third, the release feeds directly into rate expectations. Money market pricing for the Bank of England’s next decision usually adjusts within minutes, and analysts at the major banks revise their quarterly growth forecasts the same morning. The Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee sets Bank Rate with an inflation target of 2%, and it reads GDP alongside the labour market and services inflation to judge how much spare capacity the economy has.

Because the monthly series is volatile, the size of the reaction depends heavily on whether the surprise is confirmed by the three-month rate and the sector detail. A weak headline caused by a one-off, for example a cancelled event affecting a specific industry or an unusually wet month for construction, is often discounted quickly. A broad-based slowdown in services carries far more weight.

Outside the UK, the release matters most as a read on European demand. The UK is a large export market for the euro area, and gilt moves often spill into German Bund and US Treasury pricing during the London morning. Asian traders see the number late in their session, so the first response frequently comes through sterling crosses in Tokyo and Singapore hours.

What It Means for Your Money

Mortgages. GDP does not set your mortgage rate directly, but it shapes expectations for Bank Rate, and those expectations drive the swap rates that lenders use to price fixed-rate deals. A run of weak growth data tends to pull fixed mortgage rates lower over weeks, not hours. Stronger growth, particularly with inflation still above target, tends to keep them higher for longer.

Savings. The same logic runs in reverse for savers. If growth data make rate cuts look more likely, easy-access and fixed-term savings rates usually drift down, so locking a fixed rate earlier can pay off. If growth surprises to the upside, savings rates hold up for longer.

Jobs and pay. Output growth and hiring move together with a lag. Sustained growth in services, the largest employer in the UK, generally supports vacancies and pay settlements. A stalling economy usually shows up in fewer vacancies before it shows up in redundancies.

Prices. Faster growth with limited spare capacity can add to inflation, especially in services, where wages are the main cost. Weak growth eases that pressure, which is one reason the Bank of England watches GDP alongside the consumer prices index.

Pensions and investments. If you hold a UK-focused fund or a workplace pension with UK equities and gilts, GDP surprises affect both sides of your portfolio: gilt prices rise when growth disappoints, while domestically exposed shares often fall. Globally diversified investors will barely notice a single monthly release.

The pound, dollar and euro. Holiday money, imported goods and overseas subscriptions all reflect the exchange rate. A firmer pound makes travel and imports cheaper for UK residents; a weaker pound does the opposite and slightly raises the sterling value of overseas assets.

Related economic events

• US GDP Report: the quarterly American equivalent, published by the Bureau of Economic Analysis, and the biggest single driver of global growth expectations.
• US CPI Report: the inflation print that sets the tone for global bond yields, including gilts.
• US Jobs Report: monthly American payrolls, released at 8:30 am ET, which often overwhelms UK data in the same week.
• US PCE Report: the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge and a key input to dollar and sterling pricing.

Frequently Asked Questions

When is the next UK GDP release?

The next monthly GDP estimate is scheduled for Friday, September 11, 2026 at 2:00 am ET, which is 7:00 am in London. Subsequent confirmed dates include October 15, 2026 and November 12, 2026.

What time is UK GDP published?

Always 7:00 am London time, which is 2:00 am ET, one hour before the London stock market opens. There is no separate embargoed briefing for market participants.

How often is UK GDP published?

Monthly, roughly six weeks after the month being measured, with quarterly national accounts published alongside the relevant monthly release and then updated in a fuller quarterly bulletin.

Where can I find the official release?

On the ONS website, in the GDP monthly estimate bulletin and its accompanying data tables, with dates confirmed in advance on the ONS release calendar.

How does UK GDP affect interest rates?

The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee uses GDP to judge how much spare capacity the economy has, so persistent weakness strengthens the case for rate cuts and persistent strength argues for holding rates higher, though inflation and wage data usually carry more weight in the decision itself.