RIYADH/CAIRO: The UK’s GDP went up by a quarterly rate of 1.1 percent in the third quarter of 2021, which was lower than the initial estimate of 1.3 percent, according to the country’s Office for National Statistics. The rise in output was driven by elimination of some public health restrictions. This, in turn, strengthened activity in the accommodation and food services and the arts, entertainment and recreation services industries, also known as consumer-facing sectors. The economy slowed down from the 5.4 percent growth in the second quarter when several COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. Labor and product shortfalls could be responsible for the decline in construction and manufacturing production during the third quarter. European economy With the advent of omicron, it is not clear whether inflation will rise or decline in the coming period, Bloomberg reported, citing a council member in the European Central Bank. If more lockdowns took place as a result of the variant, demand would weaken and inflationary pressures would ease off. On the other hand, if supply chain disruptions worsen, inflation would gain momentum Egypt’s minimum wages The National Council of Wages in Egypt announced, during its meeting today, Tuesday, that as of January 1, 2022, the minimum wage will be applied in the private sector. The lower limit of wages in the sector is set at 2,400 pounds ($152.9) per month, Al Arabiya reported. Mexico taming inflation The Bank of Mexico has recently raised interest rates by 50 basis points to stand at 5.5 percent as the country grappled with two-decade high inflation. The governor of the bank said that this shows commitment to tame inflationary pressures in the country after lifting interest rates for the fifth consecutive month. Favorable assessment for Japanese economy The Japanese government is set to raise its growth forecasts for the 2022 fiscal year to 3.2 percent, up from a previous 2.2 percent, according to the Jiji news agency. US population The US population grew by only 0.1 percent in 2021, the lowest expansion rate on record. This was driven by a drop in net international migration, lower fertility and higher mortality, with the latter partly attributed to the pandemic, according to the US Census Bureau. In another related development, life expectancy in the US declined to 77 years in 2020, falling noticeably by 1.8 years compared to 2019, data from the National Center for Health Statistics showed. Males suffered from a larger decrease in their expected lifetimes, as well as Black and Hispanic Americans when compared to White Americans. US economic growth eases The annual gross domestic product growth in the US was upwardly revised to 2.3 percent in this year’s third quarter, yet it still slowed down from the previous quarter’s 6.7 percent expansion, data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis showed. Expenditure on personal consumption decelerated significantly from 12 percent in the second quarter to 2 percent in the following quarter. In addition, spending on goods declined after two quarters of strong growth as purchases of motor vehicles and their parts slumped. Moreover, profits of domestic financial institutions went up by $14.2 billion, noticeably lower than the previous quarter’s $52.8 billion. Similarly, net income of their non-financial counterparts jumped $31.6 billion versus $221.3 billion in the second quarter.