The economy is starting to look like a small boat tossed by the waves of political madness

Inside Business: After PMI numbers painted a dreadful picture of what happened in June, the ONS is preparing to release its estimate of GDP for the three months to the end of May

Philip Hammond has boasted about the 25 consecutive quarters of growth. His successor may have to explain why the streak is ending (AFP/Getty Images)

Last week’s UK economic news was about as dismal as it could get. There were three sets of Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) numbers for manufacturing, construction, and services and they all fell within varying degrees of awfulness.

The first showed that manufacturing in June contracted faster than anyone expected. It came in at 48 with anything above 50 representing growth.

The second, construction, provided an even bigger shock on the downside, tumbling to 43.1. Services, the UK’s dominant sector, crept into positive territory at 50.2. But that was a lot worse than economists had expected (51).