The UK economy grew 0.1% total in the 3 months to February – a distressing image of the circumstance before the coronavirus lockdown.

GDP figures from the Office for National Data likewise show the economy contracted 0.1% throughout February, following gains in December and January.

The figures will be worrying as they show the economy was currently struggling ahead of the constraints put in location to restrict the spread of COVID-19, the disease brought on by the coronavirus

The steps were carried out in mid-March and consisted of the closure of non-essential companies and people being informed to remain home aside from a couple of exceptions.

This has actually left numerous companies and employees struggling, and economic experts are anticipating a serious economic downturn.

There was a noteworthy fall in building throughout February, blamed on the damp weather and flooding, and overall production fell by 0.6% in the 3 months to February, led by a 0.4% decline in producing output.

The services sector grew however it is among sectors that will be worst-affected by the lockdown revealed in March.

Jeremy Thomson Cook, primary economic expert at Equals, stated the figures show that the UK economy got in the coronavirus crisis “at best stagnant, with only the services economy keeping wider GDP above zero”.

“Previous periods of slow economic growth in the UK have seen a marked rebound in consumer spending given Brits’ propensity to grab a bargain or load up on personal debt; without such a similar impulse, the pistons that fire the UK’s economic engine look very stuck.”

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Samuel Tombs, chief UK economic expert at Pantheon Macroeconomics, stated: “Looking ahead, we have actually presumed that GDP will have to do with 20% below regular throughout the lockdown, which we anticipate to last 3 months.

” This points to a quarter- on-quarter drop in GDP of 1.8% in Q1, followed by a substantial decline of about 15% in Q2, though all projections simply are ballpark price quotes at this phase.

” Afterwards, we are fairly positive that a mix of mass screening and contact tracing, together with continued social distancing and periodic localised lockdowns can assist to keep virus infection numbers at a level the NHS can handle in the second half of this year, without the federal government needing to keep the existing set of extreme constraints.

” However neither work nor self-confidence will return completely to its pre-virus peak this year, recommending that GDP still will have to do with 3% below pre-virus levels in Q4.”

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