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UK Q3 growth estimate unchanged at 0.8 pct

LONDON — The British economy grew by 0.8 percent in the third quarter, official statisticians confirmed Wednesday, but analysts said they expect the rate to slow in the fourth quarter and early next year.

The second estimate from the Office for National Statistics was the same as the earlier preliminary estimate.

The third-quarter rate was down from 1.2 percent in the previous three months, which was the high point so far in Britain’s recovery from a deep recession.

“Encouragingly net trade accounted for half of the expansion in overall GDP,” said Vicky Redwood, senior U.K. economist at Capital Economics. However, she added, business survey suggest that growth has slowed sharply in the current quarter.

“We expect the impact of government spending cuts, concerns about job security in the public sector and uncertainty caused by the escalating financial crisis in Europe to become even more evident as we move towards the end of 2010, “ said Chris Williamson, chief economist at Markit.