PHOTO
FILE PHOTO: Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves meets with defence suppliers at RAF Northolt on March 6, 2025 in Ruislip, Britain. Dan Kitwood/Pool via REUTERS.
Britain's economy is forecast to grow by 1.0% this year, finance minister Rachel Reeves said on Wednesday, citing the latest projections from the Office for Budget Responsibility.
The new prediction was much weaker than a forecast of 2.0% growth for 2025 in the OBR's previous outlook published in October, when Reeves delivered her first full budget.
The OBR expects economic output to expand by 1.9% in 2026 and by 1.75% over the rest of the decade, Reeves said as she delivered a half-yearly budget update.
Those forecasts compared with the OBR's previous expectations for growth of 1.8% in 2026 and 1.5% in 2027.
(Reporting by David Milliken and Sachin Ravikumar; writing by Suban Abdulla; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
