Key Points

• Scotland’s GDP fell by 0.6% in real terms during the fourth quarter of 2023. Over the same period, GDP in the UK as a whole fell by 0.3%.
• In the fourth quarter of 2023 services output fell by 0.1%, while production output fell by 3.0% with the fall of 3.7% in manufacturing output making the largest contribution to the overall result.
• Compared to the same quarter last year, Scotland’s GDP fell by 0.3%. Over the same period, the UK as a whole fell by 0.2%.
• Over 2023 as a whole Scotland’s GDP grew by 0.2% compared to 2022. Equivalent UK growth was 0.1%.

What is in the first quarterly estimate of GDP?

The first quarterly estimate of GDP covers the output approach to GDP and reports on:

• Real terms – results have been seasonally adjusted and had the effect of price changes removed to allow for meaningful comparisons over time
• Onshore economy – figures do not include the output of offshore oil and gas extraction (which is included in the headline UK figures)
• Revisions – There are no revisions to previous quarters in this release. The GDP Quarterly National Accounts, published on 1 May 2024, will include an updated second estimate of GDP for 2023 Q4 and revisions to previous quarters.