SCOTLAND’S economy has grown for the fifth month in a row, but the recovery from coronavirus is slowing down, according to official figures.
The latest monthly estimates found onshore GDP increased by 1.6 per cent in September.
However the economy remains 7.6% smaller than when Covid first struck in February.
The 1.6% increase in September was the smallest since the economy slumped during the first lockdown and GDP fell by 5.6% and 19.3% in March and April respectively.
Since then it has grown by 2.4% in May, 6.3% in June, 6.9% in July, and 2.6% in August.
September saw growth in all of the main sectors of the economy, but again this was slower than in the summer, pointing to economic struggle this winter.
Output in the dominant services sector grew 1.6% on August, production sector output increased by 1.4%, and construction sector output increased by 2.7%.
The Scottish economy hit its lowest point in April, when GDP was estimated to have fallen by almost a quarter (23.8%) over just two months.
That compares to a drop of just 4% over 18 months when the financial crisis sparked a recession in 2008 and 2009.
Scottish GDP is estimated to have risen by 14.7% in the quarter July to September, after falls of by 3.2% and 19.4% in the first and second quarters of 2020, which constituted a recession.
The quarterly figures show economic growth across all the main sectors of the economy.
Output in construction was up 58% in the last quarter, with rises of 14.7% in the production sector, 12.7% for services and 3.1% for agriculture, forestry and fishing.
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