No recession yet, but we're not out of the woods...

Break in Premier League games help fuel slowdown

- Jonathan Prynn and David Bond

BRITAIN'S economy narrowly avoided sliding into recession by the smallest of margins, official figures revealed today. 

Although the Office for National Statistics said output in December fell by 0.5 per cent, the economy remained flat over the fourth quarter of 2022 thanks to positive figures for October and November.

That means it did not quite meet the technical definition of a recession - two consecutive quarters of negative growth. The economy shrank 0.2 per cent in the third quarter from July to September.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said the data showed the "underlying resilience of the UK economy" and highlighted the annual GDP growth of four per cent which he said made Britain the fastest growing advanced economy in the world.

But with energy bills and interest rates set to increase further this year, many economists predict the squeeze on household budgets will steer Britain into a recession in 2023. Mr Hunt acknowledged the UK is "not out the woods yet", adding that inflation, at 10.5 per cent in December, was still "much too high". He added: "That is causing pain for families up and down the country."

Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves said Britain's economy is "stuck in the slow lane" and that "working people are paying the price".