Britain to be fastest growing economy in G7 this year
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has upped its forecast for UK growth this year to 2.9 per cent.
In January, it predicted GDP would rise 2.5 per cent, but stable inflation and lower unemployment are helping Britain stay on course for its strongest growth since 2007, it says.
The figure puts Britain ahead of the US (2.8 per cent), Canada (2.3 per cent) and Germany (1.7 per cent).
The last time the UK topped the G7 in terms of grown was April 2008. Moreover, growth could even go above official projections, said the fund, boosted by increased confidence.
Meanwhile, the IMF’s slashed Japan’s growth forecast from 1.7 per cent to 1.4 per cent. France is expected to grow by one per cent this year.
It says the world economy will expand 3.6 per cent this year and 3.9 per cent next year – that’s 0.1 per cent lower for both figures. Last year, it grew three per cent.
The fund’s also cut its emerging markets forecast by 0.2 per cent to 4.9 per cent growth, saying: "emerging market risks have increased, there are risks to activity from lower-than-expected inflation in advanced economies, and geopolitical risks have resurfaced."