The Office for National Statistics does not produce economic data for the
City of Manchester alone, but includes four other metropolitan boroughs,
Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, in an area named Greater Manchester
South, which had a GVA of £34.8bn. The economy grew relatively strongly between
2002 and 2012, where growth was 2.3% above the national average. With a GDP of
$88.3bn (2012 est., PPP) the wider metropolitan economy is the third-largest in
the United Kingdom. It is ranked as a beta world city by the Globalization and
World Cities Research Network.
As the UK economy continues to recover from
