Four charged with fraud over Patisserie Valerie collapse; UK GDP shrinks 0.5% in July – as it happened

• All three main sectors of the economy in decline after strikes by doctors, radiographers and teachers, while construction and retail hit by wet weather
• BP shares fall after shock departure of chief executive

All of Europe's main stock markets are in the red but losses are muted.

UK's FTSE 100 index down 0.05% at 7,524

Germany's Dax down 0.3% at 15,671

France's CAC down 0.4% at 7,224

Italy's FTSE MiB down 0.4% at 28,458

It may be tempting to downplay the weakness in July as a combination of strike action, poor weather and general payback from the 0.5% GDP rise reported in the prior month. But the source of weakness appears to have rotated more towards private sector services.

When taken in conjunction with the recent slide in the PMI, recent outturns look more concerning - especially with that survey sliding further into August. We have been arguing against the idea that the UK is entering into a proper recession dynamic on the grounds that household real incomes look set for a strong gain in 2H23, while business confidence is generally running above average. That remains the case, but the near term path for growth looks worse and we have revised down our third-quarter GDP forecast from 0.3%q/q to 0.0%.