UK growth slows amid recession fears

Britain’s economy grew at the slowest pace for a year at the start of 2022, as official figures showed a contraction in March amid mounting fears that the cost-of-living crisis may plunge the UK into recession.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said gross domestic product (GDP) rose by a weaker-than-expected 0.8% between January and March, the weakest since the first quarter of last year.

The figures showed that on a monthly basis, GDP fell by 0.1% in March after growth stalled in February – revised down from the 0.1% previous growth estimate – and rose by 0.7% in January. While the expansion means GDP is now 0.7% above levels seen before the pandemic struck, the figures are likely to mark the calm before the storm as warnings grow over a recession in the UK.

Darren Morgan, director of economic statistics at the ONS, said: “The UK economy grew for the fourth consecutive quarter and is now clearly above pre-pandemic levels, although growth in the latest three months was the lowest for a year.”