Sahm rule recession indicator — Recession signal in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: Sahm rule recession indicator — Recession signal was 1 Unspecified in 2026. ◆ Volatile
Sahm rule recession indicator — Recession signal in United Kingdom, 1984–2026
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Unspecified.
Analysis
United Kingdom recorded 1 Unspecified for sahm rule recession indicator — recession signal in 2026. That is the highest value across all 43 years on record.
That represents a change of unchanged over five years.
Over the whole period, sahm rule recession indicator — recession signal in United Kingdom peaked at 1 Unspecified in 1991 and was at its lowest, 0 Unspecified, in 1984.
United Kingdom ranks 1st of 30 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Sahm rule recession indicator — Recession signal in United Kingdom, year by year
| Year | Unspecified | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1984 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 1985 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 1986 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 1987 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 1988 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 1989 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 1990 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 1991 | 1 Unspecified | — |
| 1992 | 1 Unspecified | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 1 Unspecified | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 0 Unspecified | -100.0% |
| 1995 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 1996 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 1997 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 1998 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 1999 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 2000 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 2001 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 2002 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 2003 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 2004 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 2005 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 2006 | 1 Unspecified | — |
| 2007 | 0 Unspecified | -100.0% |
| 2008 | 1 Unspecified | — |
| 2009 | 1 Unspecified | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 1 Unspecified | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 1 Unspecified | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 0 Unspecified | -100.0% |
| 2013 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 2014 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 2015 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 2016 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 2017 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 2018 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 2019 | 0 Unspecified | — |
| 2020 | 1 Unspecified | — |
| 2021 | 1 Unspecified | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 0 Unspecified | -100.0% |
| 2023 | 1 Unspecified | — |
| 2024 | 0 Unspecified | -100.0% |
| 2025 | 1 Unspecified | — |
| 2026 | 1 Unspecified | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 0 Unspecified | 0 Unspecified | 0 Unspecified | 6 |
| 1990s | 0.3 Unspecified | 0 Unspecified | 1 Unspecified | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.3 Unspecified | 0 Unspecified | 1 Unspecified | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.2 Unspecified | 0 Unspecified | 1 Unspecified | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.7143 Unspecified | 0 Unspecified | 1 Unspecified | 7 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom
More reference data data for United Kingdom
- Cooling and heating degree days by NUTS 2 regions - monthly data 1.57 % change on previous year (2025)
- Cooling and heating degree days by NUTS 2 regions - annual data -3.65 % change on previous year (2025)
- Cooling and heating degree days by NUTS 3 region - annual data 2,710 (2025)
- Cooling and heating degree days by NUTS 3 region - monthly data 358.44 (2025)
- R&D personnel by sector of performance and region — R&D Personnel 739,816 Persons (2017)
- Victims in road accidents by NUTS 2 region 1,860 (2016)
- Stock of vehicles by category and NUTS 2 region 36.71 million (2018)
- Deaths (total) by NUTS 3 region 614,313 (2018)
- Establishments, bedrooms and bed-places in tourist accommodation, by 84,580 (2016)
- Deaths by age, sex and NUTS 2 region 614,313 (2018)
Frequently asked questions
- What is sahm rule recession indicator — recession signal in United Kingdom?
- Sahm rule recession indicator — recession signal in United Kingdom was 1 Unspecified in 2026, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest sahm rule recession indicator — recession signal recorded in United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 1 Unspecified in 1991.
- What is the lowest sahm rule recession indicator — recession signal recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 Unspecified in 1984.
- How does United Kingdom rank for sahm rule recession indicator — recession signal?
- United Kingdom ranks 1st out of 30 countries with data for 2026.
- Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Sahm rule recession indicator — Recession signal. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 43 observations, free to reuse under OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required).
About this data
The Sahm rule is a simple recession indicator based on increases in the unemployment rate. Originally developed for the United States, it is triggered when the three-month average unemployment rate rises by at least 0.5 percentage points above its lowest level in the previous year. To assess its usefulness beyond the United States, the OECD has calculated the Sahm indicator for OECD countries using monthly unemployment rates from the OECD Labour Force Surveys and replaced the fixed U.S. threshold with country-specific thresholds. Under this approach, the indicator is triggered when the three-month average unemployment rate rises above its country-specific threshold relative to its lowest level in the previous year. For more information please refer to Can we predict recessions using only unemployment data? Applying the Sahm rule to OECD countries.