UK Q2 Current Account Gap Smallest in 7 Quarters

2026-09-30 06:16 By Chusnul Chotimah 1 min. read

The UK’s current account deficit narrowed to £19.9 billion (2.5% of GDP) in the second quarter of 2026 from a downwardly revised £21.1 billion in the previous quarter, better than market expectations for a £24.7 billion shortfall.

It was the smallest current account deficit since Q3 2025, as the secondary income deficit narrowed to £3.3 billion, equivalent to 0.4% of GDP, from £3.7 billion in the previous period.

Meanwhile, the goods trade deficit declined to £64.0 billion from £65.0 billion in the prior quarter, while the services surplus increased to £51.3 billion from £48.8 billion.

By contrast, the primary income deficit widened to £3.8 billion, or 0.5% of GDP, from £1.3 billion in the first quarter, as payments to foreign investors increased by £5.4 billion to £112.9 billion, while receipts climbed by £2.8 billion to £109.0 billion.



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UK Q2 Current Account Gap Smallest in 7 Quarters
The UK’s current account deficit narrowed to £19.9 billion (2.5% of GDP) in the second quarter of 2026 from a downwardly revised £21.1 billion in the previous quarter, better than market expectations for a £24.7 billion shortfall. It was the smallest current account deficit since Q3 2025, as the secondary income deficit narrowed to £3.3 billion, equivalent to 0.4% of GDP, from £3.7 billion in the previous period. Meanwhile, the goods trade deficit declined to £64.0 billion from £65.0 billion in the prior quarter, while the services surplus increased to £51.3 billion from £48.8 billion. By contrast, the primary income deficit widened to £3.8 billion, or 0.5% of GDP, from £1.3 billion in the first quarter, as payments to foreign investors increased by £5.4 billion to £112.9 billion, while receipts climbed by £2.8 billion to £109.0 billion.
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UK Q1 Current Account Deficit Exceeds Forecasts
The UK’s current account deficit narrowed to £22.1 billion (2.8% of GDP) in the first quarter of 2026 from an upwardly revised £27.2 billion in the previous quarter, but remained slightly wider than market expectations of a £21.5 billion shortfall. The primary income deficit decreased to £3.9 billion, or 0.5% of GDP, from £11.9 billion in the fourth quarter, as payments to foreign investors dropped by £1.5 billion to £111.0 billion, while receipts increased by £6.5 billion to £107.1 billion. In addition, the secondary income deficit narrowed to £3.5 billion from £3.8 billion in the previous period, remaining at 0.5% of GDP. Meanwhile, the goods trade deficit increased to £66.6 billion from £64.5 billion in the prior quarter, whereas the services surplus declined slightly to £51.8 billion from £53.0 billion.
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UK Current Account Deficit Widens in Q4
The UK’s current account deficit widened to £18.4 billion (2.4% of GDP) in the fourth quarter of 2025 from a revised £10.7 billion in the previous quarter but was below market expectations of a £23.4 billion shortfall. The primary income deficit increased to £2.7 billion, or 0.3% of GDP, from £0.7 billion in the third quarter, as payments to foreign investors rose by £2.6 billion to £111.1 billion, outpacing the £0.7 billion increase in receipts to £108.4 billion. In addition, the goods trade deficit expanded to a record £65.5 billion from £59.4 billion in the prior quarter, whereas the services surplus decreased slightly to £53.3 billion from £53.5 billion. Meanwhile, the secondary income deficit narrowed to £3.6 billion (0.5% of GDP) from £4.1 billion (0.5% of GDP) in the previous period.
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