The UK economy experiences slower-than-expected growth of 0.1% in November.

• On Wednesday, the Labour government, Treasury, and Bank of England received some relief as the latest inflation data showed that consumer price growth had decreased more than anticipated in the twelve months leading up to December.
• In December, the consumer price index unexpectedly decreased to 2.5%, with core price growth slowing even further. Despite economists predicting no change in the inflation rate from November's 2.6% reading, the print came in below expectations.

In November, the U.K. economy grew at a sluggish rate of 0.1%, according to data from the Office of National Statistics.

The predicted month-on-month growth rate of 0.2% by economists surveyed by Reuters is lower than this.

In October, the monthly real GDP decreased by 0.1%, after a 0.1% decline in September and a 0.2% increase in August.

The Bank of England is considering lowering interest rates at its next meeting on Feb.6.

The central bank is expected to cut interest rates by 25 basis points after the release of a cooler-than-expected annual inflation print for December.

Although BOE policymakers will consider inflationary pressures, such as resilient wage growth and uncertainty over Britain's economic outlook, the central bank's inflation target remains at 2%.

The Labour government and Treasury faced pressure recently due to rising borrowing costs and doubts about their fiscal plans and business tax burden. On Wednesday, they received relief when the latest inflation data showed that consumer price growth in December was lower than expected at 2.5%, with core price growth also slowing.

Reuters polled economists who predicted the inflation rate would remain unchanged from the 2.6% reading of November, but the print came in below their expectations.

The twelve-month core inflation rate, excluding food and energy prices, was 3.2% in December, a decrease from the previous month's rate of 3.5%.

In December, the annual services inflation rate in the U.K. decreased from 5% in November to 4.4%, despite a rise in monthly prices due to higher fuel costs and the price of services.

Recently, the U.K. economy has faced challenges, with experts expressing concerns about the country's slow growth prospects and the impact of external factors, such as potential trade tariffs from President-elect Donald Trump, as well as internal fiscal and economic issues that have affected the Labour government and Treasury since the October budget.

The U.K. economy grew by 0.1% in November, as reflected in the updated headline of this article. A previous version contained an error in the figure.