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UK economy grew 0.1% in August, official figures show

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Coverage spectrum

Covered by 6 outlets, mostly center (67%).

6 articles in total. The spectrum counts each outlet once and leaves opinion out. How we measure bias

Official figures from the Office for National Statistics show the UK economy grew by 0.1% in August. Sky News, CNBC, BBC News and the Guardian all report the rise, which was better than economists had expected; the Guardian says City economists had forecast a 0.1% contraction. The figures came less than two weeks before Chancellor John Healey's first Budget, due on 28 October. The Guardian reports that the growth came despite a fall in consumer spending, and that the war in the Middle East has raised energy costs for households and businesses.

Headline and summary written by Mantle’s AI from the coverage below, under published rules. How this works

What happened

Key points

Each point shows who reports it, from Far Left to Far Right.

  1. UK GDP grew 0.1% in August, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics.

    Reported byLeft1Center3See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The Guardian
    Center
    Sky News, CNBC, BBC News

  2. City economists had forecast that the economy would shrink by 0.1% in August.

    Reported byLeft1Center2See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The Guardian
    Center
    Sky News, CNBC

  3. Consumer spending fell in August, even as GDP grew.

    One outletThe Guardian· Left

  4. Chancellor John Healey's first Budget is due on 28 October.

    Reported byLeft1Center1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The Guardian
    Center
    BBC News

How each side tells it

Compare views

All outlets report that official figures show UK GDP grew 0.1% in August. The Guardian stresses the surprise alongside falling consumer spending, while the centre outlets focus on beating forecasts or on timing before the Budget.

  • the left

    2 outlets

    The Guardian's own headline leads with the surprise of growth and sets it against falling consumer spending; it is the only left-side article supplied.

    UK economy unexpectedly grows 0.1% in August despite fall in consumer spending
    The GuardianLeftAll left-leaning headlines

  • the center

    4 outlets

    Headlines report the 0.1% rise plainly, either as beating expectations or as news ahead of the Budget, with no added judgement.

    UK economy grew 0.1% in August, beating expectations
    CNBCCenterAll center headlines

  • the right

    No coverage yet

    No right-leaning outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.

The words they chose

Language to notice

Words that carry a judgement beyond the facts. Tap a highlighted word anywhere on the page to see why.

  • Left1

    rattles the global economy

  • Center0

    No loaded words in its own voice.

  • Right

    Has not covered this story.

In the outlets’ own words

  • Loaded verb

    rattles the global economyMore neutral: affects the global economy

    The verb “rattles” adds a sense of drama to the effect of the war on the economy, where “affects” would state the same fact without judgement.

    …Healey’s budget, the latest figures come as the war in the Middle East rattles the global economy and hits British households and businesses with a surge in energy costs.

    Used byThe Guardian (Left)

See the full language guide

See for yourself

Side by side

What each side leads with and what it leaves out. Open a side to read its headlines.

From the left

2 outlets

Leads with

  • unexpected growth
  • falling consumer spending
  • cost of living pressure
  • energy costs from the Middle East war
See the 2 headlines from the leftHide the headlines
  • The GuardianLeft

    UK economy unexpectedly grows 0.1% in August despite fall in consumer spending

    Latest data comes just two weeks before chancellor’s budget looks to help consumers traverse the cost of living crisis The UK economy unexpectedly continued to grow in August despite a fall in consumer spending before chancellor John Healey’s budget. …

    Read at The Guardian (opens in a new tab)
  • BloombergLeft

    FTSE 100 Live: UK Economy Unexpectedly Grew 0.1% in August

    Ad Choices Help©2026 Bloomberg L.P. All Rights Reserved.

    Read at Bloomberg (opens in a new tab)

From the center

4 outlets

Leads with

  • growth beat expectations
  • official ONS figures
  • timing before the Budget

Leaves out

  • fall in consumer spending

Reported by other sides, not found in this side’s coverage.

See the 4 headlines from the centerHide the headlines

From the right

0 outlets

No right-leaning outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.

Articles you open from here build My Mix, a private picture of how your reading spreads across the spectrum, kept on this device. What is My Mix?

The left is Far Left and Left together. The right is Right and Far Right together. Every outlet keeps its own five-point rating.

Who reported it when

How the coverage built up

  • Left

    49 min later

    Its first report, Oct 15, 1:55 AM EDT

  • Center

    First to report

    Sky News, Oct 15, 1:06 AM EDT

  • Right

    No report yet

    From the outlets Mantle follows

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. Sky NewsCenterOct 15, 1:06 AM EDT
  2. BloombergLeftOct 15, 1:55 AM EDT
  3. The GuardianLeftOct 15, 2:05 AM EDT
  4. CNBCCenterOct 15, 2:12 AM EDT
  5. BBC NewsCenterOct 15, 2:15 AM EDT
  6. Financial TimesCenterOct 15, 2:44 AM EDT

Times are the ones the outlets published in their own feeds, in Eastern time. Opinion is left out.

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