The Office for National Statistics published a new edition of its real-time indicators of economic activity and social change in the United Kingdom on September 10, 2026, bringing together data from a wide range of areas across the British economy.

The indicators are designed to provide a faster view of developments that may emerge before more comprehensive traditional economic statistics become available.

ONS produces the collection using rapid response surveys, novel data sources and experimental methods, with the datasets described as “official statistics in development”.

That distinction is important. The indicators can provide early signals about different parts of economic and social activity, but individual measures should not be interpreted as a complete assessment of the condition of the UK economy.

The September 10 edition includes information covering energy, transport, housing, vehicles, consumer activity, employment-related signals and retail activity.

One component monitors automotive fuel demand. Weekly data estimate the quantity of automotive fuel purchased per average transaction in the UK, using ONS calculations and information from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.

Another indicator monitors the natural gas market. ONS publishes daily information on the System Average Price, or SAP, of gas traded in Great Britain through the On-the-Day Commodity Market, alongside a rolling seven-day average. The source is National Gas Transmission.

Electricity is monitored separately. The collection includes the System Price of electricity in Great Britain and its rolling seven-day average using data sourced from Elexon. Together, the gas and electricity indicators can provide rapid information about developments in energy markets that matter to households and businesses.

Housing represents another significant part of the collection. ONS incorporates weekly and monthly information from Rightmove relating to the housing market in Great Britain. Rental affordability for new tenancies is monitored separately. This dataset examines the proportion of gross income spent on rent for new tenancies across the UK using Dataloft Rental Market Analytics.

Energy Performance Certificates are another property-related indicator. Weekly information tracks the number of EPCs for new and existing domestic properties in England and Wales.

The automotive sector is represented through information on new vehicle registrations and UK vehicle production. Monthly data track both the number of new vehicles registered in the United Kingdom and the number produced, using information from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.

ONS also monitors early signals from the labour market. The advanced notification of potential redundancies indicator uses HR1 forms submitted to the Insolvency Service. It provides weekly information about the number of potential redundancies and the number of employers proposing redundancies in Great Britain.

These figures should not be confused with the number of workers who have actually been made redundant. A notification of potential redundancies reflects employer intentions and does not mean that every proposed redundancy will ultimately take place.

Consumer behaviour is also monitored through payment-card activity. ONS uses indices based on Revolut debit card transaction data to track weekly and monthly changes in spending activity in the United Kingdom.

Transport contributes another two groups of indicators. Weekly shipping data track ship visits to and from selected UK ports using information from exactEarth. Aviation activity is measured through daily UK flight numbers. The data cover flights to, from and within the United Kingdom and include a rolling seven-day average, using information supplied by EUROCONTROL.

Activity in shopping locations is captured through a separate retail footfall indicator. Weekly and monthly information measures retail footfall across different location categories and UK regions using BT Active Intelligence data.

Taken together, these sources provide an unusually broad snapshot of everyday activity across the British economy. Energy prices can provide rapid signals from gas and electricity markets, payment-card transactions can offer information about consumer behaviour, retail footfall can indicate activity in shopping locations, and aviation and shipping data can reflect the movement of people and goods.

Housing and rental indicators provide additional information about pressures affecting households. Potential redundancy notifications can meanwhile provide an early indication of changes in employer behaviour.

The principal advantage of these indicators is speed. Traditional economic statistics such as gross domestic product, inflation and comprehensive labour-market measures are produced using established statistical methodologies and released according to defined schedules. Real-time indicators are intended to complement those statistics by drawing on sources that can become available more quickly.

There is, however, an important limitation. ONS describes the datasets in this collection as “official statistics in development”. They use rapid surveys, novel data sources and innovative methods. An individual indicator should therefore not be used on its own to conclude, for example, that the British economy is expanding or entering recession. Such conclusions require the relevant official economic statistics and consideration of a much broader range of evidence.

The latest collection nevertheless provides a complementary and faster view of activities taking place daily, weekly and monthly across the UK economy and society. ONS has scheduled the next release of its real-time indicators for September 17, 2026.

Source consulted: Economic activity and social change in the UK, real-time indicators: 10 September 2026

Photo: Fred Romero, Shoreditch High Street, London, 10 October 2016. Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.