Business investment growth in the U.K. was broadly flat on a quarterly basis at £46.0 billion, but rose 2.1% year on year in the fourth quarter of 2017, preliminary estimates from the Office for National Statistics showed.

In the third quarter of 2017, business investment grew by 0.2% to £45.8 billion.

Gross fixed capital formation, an estimate of net capital expenditure by public and private sectors, rose by 1.1% in the last quarter of 2017 to £84.0 billion from £83.1 billion in the previous quarter. Intellectual property products, transport equipment and dwellings contributed to the growth in gross fixed capital formation during the quarter.

Compared to the year-ago period, fourth-quarter gross fixed capital formation was up 3.8% in 2017.