Morning all – lots to get through once more, starting with the latest economic data and reaction to it.

Right let’s attack everything in order on the UK economy front then.

First up, today’s ONS data, nice and clear:

• No growth in July at all
• Manufacturing pulled back 1.3% in July
• 0.2% growth overall in the three months May-July
• Services and construction grew most across that three-month period

Liz McKeown, ONS director of economic statistics, said: “Within services, health, computer programming and office support services all performed well, while the falls in production were driven by broad based weakness across manufacturing industries.

“Falls in production were driven by broad-based weakness across manufacturing industries.”

Read the full detail below – we’ll bring you all the reaction as we go here in the live blog.

You’ll be unsurprised to hear the initial political responses to the latest figures.

The government say it’s the result of what came before; the Tories say it’s all down to poor decision making in the here and now.

Isn’t it amazing how it’s never anything to do with anything anybody has ever done within their own collectives?!

A Treasury spokesperson said: “We know there’s more to do to boost growth, because, whilst our economy isn’t broken, it does feel stuck.

“That’s the result of years of underinvestment, which we’re determined to reverse through our Plan for Change. We’re making progress: growth this year was the fastest in the G7; since the election, interest rates have been cut five times, and real wages have risen faster than they did under the last government.

“There’s more to do to build an economy that works for, and rewards, working people.”

In response, Sir Mel Stride MP, shadow chancellor of the exchequer, says the prime minister needs to turn around the ship being steered so far by Rachel Reeves.

“Any economic growth is welcome – but this Government is distracted from the problems the country is facing,” he said.

“While the Government lurch from one scandal to another, borrowing costs recently hit a 27-year high – a damning vote of no confidence in Labour that makes painful tax rises all but certain.

“It is little wonder that Starmer has stripped Reeves of control over the budget. But sidelining her is not enough – he must also reject her failed economic approach that has left Britain poorer.”

The lead economist from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), Ben Jones, adds:

“The government cannot tax its way to growth and continue to raid corporate coffers. With the Autumn Budget fast approaching, the Chancellor must deliver a decisive, pro-growth package by committing to serious tax reform. It’s the structure of our system – from punitive business rates to the restrictive VAT threshold and stamp duty – that holds back economic progress, not just the rates themselves.”

Month-to-month clearly it’s not great and even across three-month periods matters are grim.

But the chancellor may take some solace from some experts suggesting that the year-long growth may still exceed expectations, even if that doesn’t make it stellar growth across the board.

Thomas Pugh, chief economist at leading RSM UK said: “The flatlining of GDP in July raises a sense of deja vu with last year when the economy grew rapidly in the first half before stagnating through the second.

“Indeed, the growth outlook is more challenging for the rest of the year.

“Rising inflation, a weakening labour market and confidence-sapping speculation about the budget will combine to slow growth from 0.5% q/q in the first half of the year to around 0.2% q/q in the second.

“However, that would still be enough for growth to come in at around 1.3% this year, above the OBR’s March forecast of 1%. That will be some consolation to chancellor Reeves.”

Already, reaction to the economic data is quickly looking forward and wondering how this will impact on the Budget.

The British Chambers of Commerce says the government cannot continue to lean on businesses for taxes and still expect them to lead growth.

Stuart Morrison, research manager at BCC said:

“The business landscape remains challenging, particularly for SMEs, with cost pressures impacting investment, recruitment and trade. While our latest economic forecast suggests growth of 1.3% this year, that’s largely down to stronger-than-expected activity in Q1, before the impact of national insurance and tariffs.

“Inflation is proving stubborn, meaning for businesses struggling with the cost of borrowing, the pace of further interest rate cuts is likely to be slower than expected.

“The Government has acknowledged it has asked a lot of business in the past year. Our message is now clear – there must be no more taxes on business in the Autumn Budget. The Chancellor must focus on unlocking growth and productivity through business. Our recent Blueprint for Growth contains practical ideas to get businesses investing, recruiting and trading.”

Stock markets continue in the green today as investors follow recent patterns of optimism.

US markets finished strongly last night, the S&P 500 up 0.85%, with Asian stocks following suit overnight – Japan, Hong Kong and Australia were (or still are) up at least 0.7%.

It’s not quite as strong in London and on the continent this morning but the FTSE 100 is still up 0.24%.

German’s DAX is up 0.34%, France’s CAC 40 is up 0.14%.

We’ll keep an eye on it as we go but economic data doesn’t seem to be dampening investor enthusiasm.

A few more expert takes now on the morning data around the UK economy.

Scott Gardner, investment strategist at Nutmeg:

“Few positives can be found from this latest batch of GDP data with UK economic growth coming to a standstill during July and little sign of expansion across any of the key industries that make up the monthly reading.

“If growth is the top priority, the economy’s recent sluggishness is bad news ahead of the upcoming Budget. Key will be unlocking growth in the housing sector, which has seen a slowdown in recent months as speculation around new taxes in the Budget mount and housebuilding remains underwhelming. As the economy struggles to build on the momentum from the start of this year, the outlook for UK growth needs to improve or tough decisions will need to be made by the Chancellor in November.”

Lindsay James, investment strategist at Quilter:

“Speculation is already rife about which taxes will be raised, and without the ability to raise the main revenue generators – income tax, national insurance and VAT – the government is left with targeting multiple sectors for small amounts of revenue. This is increasing the headwinds for the UK economy and with still over two months to go, GDP readings for the second half of the year are unlikely to pretty reading. For government under as much pressure as it is at the moment, this will be a very difficult corner to get itself out of.”

Thomas Pugh, chief economist at RSM UK:

“It’s all but guaranteed that the Bank of England (BoE) will hold interest rates at 4.0% at its meeting on Thursday. The committee will stick to its gradual and cautious guidance, as it continues to try to balance rising inflation with a weakening labour market. We expect a 7-2 vote split. Looking ahead, we think the Bank will keep interest rates on hold until February.”

The gold price has soared to a new record high amid concerns about the impact of President Trump’s radical trade policies.

This week, the yellow metal’s price reached $3,600 per troy ounce (the unit used to weigh precious metals), up 42 per cent higher from a year ago.

That upward march could continue further, with December futures markets tipping $3,700 already and some experts predicting it could pass $4,000 by next year.

But “buy low, sell high” is the age-old investment advice. So, for those who haven’t yet invested, is it too late?