Britain's economy is forecast to grow by 0.8% this year after entering a recession in the second half of 2023, finance minister Jeremy Hunt said on Wednesday, citing the latest projections from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR).

The new figure for growth compared with a forecast for an expansion in 2024 of 0.7% in the OBR's previous outlook published in November.

The OBR projects economic output to expand by 1.9% in 2025 and by 2.0% in 2026, Hunt said as he gave his budget statement speech to parliament.

Those forecasts were slightly stronger than the OBR's previous expectations for growth of 1.4% and 2.0% in 2025 and 2026.

(Reporting by David Milliken and Kylie MacLellan; Writing by Suban Abdulla; Editing by Kate Holton)