Britain’s exports hit record of £85bn

EXPORTS of British goods have soared to a record high amid booming demand around the world, official figures showed.

The UK shipped £84.8bn of goods to overseas buyers from February to April – up 18pc on the same period last year.

In a sign that Britain is becoming less reliant on the Continent for trade, sales to the EU were up 16.4pc to £40.4bn while sales to the rest of the world jumped 19.6pc to £44.4bn.

Exports to China were up 54.1pc, according to the report by the Office for National Statistics, while shipments to South Korea rose 39.9pc.

Manufacturers have benefited from the fall in the pound which has tumbled against the dollar and the euro since the Brexit vote in June last year.

But a separate report by the ONS showed factory output rose by a weaker than expected 0.2pc in April while construction output fell 1.6pc.

Rising exports helped Britain’s trade deficit with the rest of the world narrow by £1.8bn in April to £2.1bn, meaning that the UK is still importing more than it exports.

The National Institute of Economic and Social Research said the economy grew by just 0.2pc in the three months to May in a sign that the slow start to the year is continuing.

Professor Jagjit Chadha, the think- tank’s director, said: ‘The subdued performance in the economy throws the political turmoil of a hung Parliament into sharp relief.’

Jack Coy, an economist at the Centre for Economics and Business Research, said: ‘The data paint a picture of the somewhat precarious UK economy.’