LONDON, (Reuters) – British companies gained a little momentum in October despite disruptions to supply chains.

CBI’s monthly indicator of growth – which combines surveys from retailers, manufacturers and other service companies – slightly rose to +29 in September from +27. It had previously reached its maximum since August 2014 at +34.

CBI’s lead economist Alpesh Paleja explained that despite all the headwinds facing the UK, it was able to achieve above-average growth over six months. This shows resilience within the UK economy.

At the beginning of October many British petrol stations were shut down. This is the clearest sign of a bottleneck in the British economy, which has just emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic. It faces a shortage of workers and fuel prices rising as well as a lack of tanker drivers.

The Office for Budget Responsibility in Britain raised its forecast for growth last week, predicting an increase of 6.5% in this year and 6.0% by 2022 as the economy bounces back from its recent slump of almost 10% in 2020.

Investors are expecting the Bank of England this week to increase interest rates for the first-time since the outbreak of the pandemic. However, some economists believe it will hold off until more information is available about the state of the economy.