The UK economy will grow by 1.5 per cent in 2026, up from 1.2 per cent last year, according to the latest projections from KPMG, which named investment in artificial intelligence and defence as key drivers of growth.
The professional services firm’s forecast puts UK growth slightly ahead of the eurozone, where it expects GDP to rise by 1 per cent this year, down from 1.4 per cent last year.
A separate monthly survey from the accountancy firm BDO also cited AI and defence investment as drivers of activity. BDO’s output index, which measures services and manufacturing activity, rose to 100.46 in October from 97.37 in September, its highest figure since July 2022. BDO treats any figure above 95 on its indices as positive.
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