The UK was the fastest growing advanced economy in 2016, says data from statistics office. It outpaced the United States and Germany with a growth of 2 percent for the year.

The United Kingdom's economy grew by 0.6 percent during the last three months of the previous year. This makes it the fastest growing advanced economy, as reported by the Telegraph.

Data from the Office for National Statistics revealed that the United Kingdom grew by 2 percent for the whole year of 2016. Compared to 2015, however, its growth can be seen to have declined by 0.2 percent from 2.2. percent.

A statistician from the Office of National Statistics, Darren Morgan, said that it was mainly consumer spending that contributed to the growth by expanding service sectors, wrote BBC. The spending is in part due to consumers taking advantage of the fall of the British pound.

The sectors which saw itself growing include travel agencies, retail industry, hotel and restaurant, as well as construction and agriculture. The hotel and restaurant industries reportedly rose by 0.8 percent in the quarter, construction by 0.1 percent, and agriculture by 0.4 percent.

In comparison, the United States and Germany are only expected to have grown by approximately 1.6 to 1.7 percent for 2016—a figure still less than the UK's 2 percent, wrote the Telegraph. However, the report added that the fall of the pound also meant that inflation has increased to 1.6 percent in December and that imports are becoming more expensive.

This news may be able to assuage the fear of many that Brexit would lead to a recession. On the other hand, the World Economic Forum reported that the United Kingdom is among the worst advanced economies in terms of its Inclusive Development Index.

The UK ranked 21^st among 29 countries. Norway was at the top spot as reported by Jobs & Hire.