UK economy shrinks 0.3% in April amid tariff uncertainty and tax increases<\/p>\n
The UK economy contracted by 0.3% in April, according to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), marking the sharpest monthly decline since October 2023. The downturn follows modest growth of 0.2% in March and 0.5% in February and exceeded economists\u2019 forecasts of a 0.1% fall.<\/p>\n
The contraction was driven by multiple factors, including higher taxes and global trade uncertainty linked to U.S. President Donald Trump’s new tariffs. The introduction of a 25% levy on UK auto exports contributed to a 0.6% drop in manufacturing, with significant reductions in car and pharmaceutical production. Goods exports to the U.S. fell by \u00a32 billion\u2014 the largest monthly decline since records began in 1997.<\/p>\n
The services sector also shrank by 0.4%, partly due to a fall in house sales following stamp duty changes in England and Northern Ireland. Construction was the only sector to grow, rising 0.9% on the back of increased housebuilding. Chancellor Rachel Reeves described the data as \u201cdisappointing but not unexpected,\u201d citing global uncertainty. While some analysts expect a rebound in May, others caution the boost from early exports may fade. Interest rates are expected to remain at 4.25% when the Bank of England meets next week.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
UK economy shrinks 0.3% in April amid tariff uncertainty and tax increases The UK economy contracted by 0.3% in April, according to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), marking the sharpest monthly decline since October 2023. The downturn follows modest growth of 0.2% in March and 0.5% in February and exceeded economists\u2019 forecasts …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":127728,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_108372464460192_245495985553329":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[10047],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-127729","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy"],"yoast_head":"\n