UK economy shrinks by 25 per cent
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The reading
The UK economy has suffered its worst economic performance since a mini ice age over 300 years ago when the River Thames froze. The UK's Office for National Statistics reported that the economy was around 25 per cent smaller in April than it was in February. The Bank of England governor, Andrew Bailey, acknowledged there was a 20.4 per cent drop in GDP in April alone. He called this "a dramatic and big number". He was positive about the future and said there were "signs of the economy now beginning to come back to life". Much of the UK economy shut down in a bid to curb the spread of the coronavirus. The UK has seen the biggest economic collapse among the world's developed economies.
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The United Kingdom's economy has seen nearly 20 years' worth of growth wiped out because of the coronavirus lockdown measures. This week, people are being encouraged to go shopping again as many stores have reopened. Many shoppers remain wary about venturing out to shops or commuting, as the number of daily deaths is still around 200. Talking about the economic collapse, Mr Bailey said: "It's not surprising. The economy clearly closed out substantially at the end of March into April. The big question is what happens next." The UK's 'Guardian' newspaper was pessimistic about a recovery. It wrote: "Britain's economy has fallen off a cliff. It will be a long climb back."
Sources:
- https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-bank-of-england-ready-to-take-action-after-economy-tanks-20-12005488
- https://www.aljazeera.com/ajimpact/uk-economy-shrinks-20-percent-april-2002-level-200612091955524.html
- https://www.theguardian.com/business/2020/jun/12/calamitous-gdp-figures-show-uk-economy-has-fallen-off-a-cliff
