According to the company’s UK Recovery Tracker, the overall pace of the UK’s recovery slowed in December, even though 10 of the 14 sectors monitored reportedly saw an expansion in output.
Consumer-facing businesses "felt the brunt" of the impact from Omicron, with the tourism, hospitality and transportation sectors "acutely" affected.
Activity in the tourism and recreation sector – which includes pubs, hotels, restaurants and leisure facilities – contracted for the first time in nine months in December (43.2) as concern over the Omicron variant impacted consumer behaviour.
