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UK Productivity Declines as Low-Performing Firms Surge

2/24/2026

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Summary

Story summary

A Boston Consulting Group report finds UK productivity is slipping due to more low-performing firms.
From 1997 through 2023, the number of firms below the 25th percentile nearly doubled while high performers fell.
Raoul Ruparel, chief UK economist at Boston Consulting Group, calls for creative destruction and targeted government action.
He cites high energy prices and slow diffusion of innovations as drags on productivity growth.

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Story summary

A Boston Consulting Group report finds UK productivity is slipping due to more low-performing firms.
From 1997 through 2023, the number of firms below the 25th percentile nearly doubled while high performers fell.
Raoul Ruparel, chief UK economist at Boston Consulting Group, calls for creative destruction and targeted government action.
He cites high energy prices and slow diffusion of innovations as drags on productivity growth.