LONDON: UK economy is set for another year of uninspiring growth in 2018, according to the latest forecasts from the EY Item Club.
This week’s first-quarter GDP figures are expected to show growth of just 0.2%-0.3%, according to EY Item Club economists, mainly due to the severe weather the hit the country at the end of February and beginning of March. This compares to quarter-on-quarter growth of 0.4% in the final three months of 2017
The forecasters have cut their estimate for full-year growth from 1.7% in their winter prediction to 1.6%, despite an expected pick-up to 0.5% quarter-on-quarter growth in the second three months of the year. For 2019, they have kept their estimate for GDP growth at 1.7%.
Howard Archer, chief economic advisor to the EY Item Club said: “The UK economy is chugging along at a fairly steady but uninspiring rate. On the surface, the outlook appears stable. Inflation, which impacted consumer spending last year, continues to drop and we expect a tight jobs market to deliver some uptick in pay growth.
