The positive statistics follow growth of 0.1% between January and March and beats negative forecasts that there would be no growth in Q2 after a GDP fall of 0.1% in May and growth of 0.2% in April.

While UK GDP was stronger than the flat growth expected between April and June, the past 18 months of growth has been the weakest for 65 years outside of a recession, growing by just 0.7% since the start of 2022, according to the Resolution Foundation.

Currently, around 7.3 million low-income families are going without essentials such as heating, eating and adequate clothing, the Joseph Rowntre Foundation’s chief economist warns as he discusses the concerns around rising interest rates, cost of rent, food and energy.

Sridhar Iyengar, MD for Zoho Europe, commented: “The past year has thrown yet another curveball at businesses with economic disruptions, so it is positive to see signs of optimism with the recent economic growth in the UK. “The pandemic highlighted that to weather external market forces, businesses should be open to change, be agile and flexible in their use. And, of course, fostering a culture of innovation should be at the core.”

“The recent turbulence has underlined the importance of SMEs being prepared to navigate turbulent times. Investing profits into research and development can position businesses as trendsetters, not just followers. The positive economic news should hopefully provide businesses with the confidence to fuel growth thorough innovation.”

Sjuul van der Leeuw, CEO of Deployteq, commented: “It is excellent to see the UK economy rebound, beating forecasts and achieving growth. An economy on the up gives businesses the confidence to push forward, promoting investment in staff, technology, and creative operations that help drive efficiencies and better support customers.”

“Investing in tech and data-driven insights for creative teams, for example, can help produce personalised, scalable content and initiatives that generate customer loyalty, and as recent Deployteq research highlighted, customer loyalty schemes have become a vital tool to retain customers regardless of the economic outlook - so it’s good to lay the groundwork during periods of economic optimism.”

Steven Mooney, CEO of FundMyPitch, commented: “Seeing positive economic progression is the boost businesses throughout the UK need to continue operations as usual and support the country’s mission to grow. As the economy bounces back, businesses must be shown support from both the government and investors alike in order to grow, develop and innovate, allowing the country to beat the negative forecasts and unpredictable market conditions.”

“SMEs will play a key role in future stability and as the economy stabilises, creating a healthy businesses environment will not only support the businesses within the UK but will make the country an attractive hub, bringing in overseas investors and promoting international relations. Business support must be high on the agenda and policy, investment and regulation to support business growth is now more important than ever.”

Alfie Stirling, the Joseph Rowntre Foundation’s Chief Economist, commented: “Even those who aren’t facing immediate hardship are being squeezed from all sides. As interest rates continue to rise, the already eye watering cost of rent, food and energy is being compounded by the rising cost of credit cards, overdrafts, and mortgages.”

“For too many people, and too many places, the economy simply isn’t working. There are too few good jobs with rising real pay, too few people have the resources to take risks and try something new, and there is too little investment in the things we all need, both now and for the future.”