British Economy Emerges from 'Technical Recession' with Robust First-Quarter Growth

The British economy bounced back strongly in the first three months of the year, bringing to an end to what economists termed a technical recession, official figures showed Friday.The Office for National Statistics said the economy grew by 0.6 per cent in the first quarter from the previous three-month period, with broad-based strength across sectors.

The British economy bounced back strongly in the first three months of the year, bringing to an end to what economists termed a "technical recession", official figures showed Friday.

The Office for National Statistics said the economy grew by 0.6 per cent in the first quarter from the previous three-month period, with broad-based strength across sectors. The increase was higher than the 0.4 per cent predicted by economists. It comes after two quarters of modest declines, which in the UK is defined as a recession. Despite the quarterly increase, the British economy has barely grown over the past year. It has been hobbled by interest rates at 16-year highs of 5.25 per cent.

There was hope Thursday that they may be on the way down soon. Bank of England Gov. Andrew Bailey indicated that a rate cut may be on the cards in June if inflation continues to trend downwards. High interest rates — which cool the economy by making it more expensive to borrow — have helped ease inflation, but they've also weighed on the British economy.

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