UK gross domestic product shrank by 20.4% in the second quarter (Q2) of 2020, the most since comparable records began in 1955, a preliminary estimate showed. That was the second consecutive quarterly decline in GDP, officially entering a recession, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the government measures taken to reduce transmission of the virus. Private consumption accounted for more than 70% of the decline in the GDP, down by 23.1%; there were also notable falls in gross fixed capital formation (-25.5%) and government consumption (-14.0%). Net external demand contributed positively as imports fell more than exports.
