A new study has some good news for the Huddersfield economy at the start of 2023.
The Irwin Mitchell City Tracker expects Huddersfield’s economy to return to growth in the second half of this year.
The City Tracker study has been produced by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr) and examines 50 locations across the UK, forecasting future growth in terms of gross value added (GVA) – a measure of economic activity – and employment.
The report, which estimates that the UK entered into recession in the second half of 2022, expects economic growth to resume in the second half of 2023.
According to the research, Huddersfield’s economy is estimated to be amongst the least hard hit by the cost-of-living crisis, ranking an impressive third place on the Q4 2022 table for GVA growth, only behind Reading and Inner London.
Looking ahead, the report says that annual contractions in economic output and employment are expected across 2023 for Huddersfield. However, in Q4 2023, Huddersfield is expected to see the beginnings of a recovery, with 0.3% annual GVA growth forecast.
Despite the growth in output, Huddersfield’s employment levels are predicted to be in the bottom five by the end of this year with a 0.1% fall in headcount.
Josie Dent, managing economist at Cebr, said: “2023 will be a difficult year for consumers and businesses in Huddersfield, with the cost-of-living crisis expected to lead to falling economic activity.
“However, Cebr forecasts that economic growth will resume in the second half of 2023, with most cities expected to see an annual expansion in GVA by Q4 2023.”
The report says: “Huddersfield ranked an impressive third place on the Q4 2022 City Tracker table for GVA growth, only behind Reading and Inner London.
“Though the economy is moderate compared to other cities with an output of £7.7 billion, this is still up by 1.1% compared to a year earlier. Furthermore, annual employment growth is estimated to have stood at 0.2% in Q4 2022.
“Looking ahead, annual contractions in economic output and employment are expected across 2023 for the Yorkshire town, as the UK experiences a recession driven by the cost-of-living crisis.
“However, in Q4 2023, Huddersfield is expected to see the beginnings of a recovery, with 0.3% annual GVA growth forecast.”
A previous Irwin Mitchell report revealed that Huddersfield had the largest sports economy relative to its size in 2020. Sport accounted for 1.92% of the town’s GVA, primarily driven by Huddersfield Town and Huddersfield Giants.
