UK takes another step on path out of recession as GDP rises

February growth was driven by manufacturing, with car production up by 17.8% compared with the same month a year earlier. Photograph: Christopher Thomond/The Guardian

Britain’s economy has taken a step closer to exiting recession as official figures showed growth continued in February despite a washout month for construction and retail after one of the wettest starts to a year on record.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said gross domestic product (GDP) rose by 0.1% in February, matching City economists’ forecasts and extending a recovery after growth in January was revised up from 0.2% to 0.3%.