UK economy shrinks by record 20.4% in April

Britain’s economy was down 20.4% in April when the country had a tight coronavirus lock-down during the months of March. The official data on Friday showed that this would be the low point of the slump in advance of a long and slow recovery.
The National Statistics Office also said that, in the three months up to April, 10.4 percent of the gross domestic product had contracted from the previous three months.
In a monthly decline of 18.4 percent and contraction of 10.0 percent in February and April, a Reuters survey of economists provided median forecasts.
Coronavirus has a major impact on our economy, as is the case with many other economies around the world, said Rishi Sunak, Minister of Finance.
Policy measures, including a payout scheme for migrant employees, including grants, guarantees and tax incentives for the Uk businesses, have the greatest chance of improving quickly as the economy begins reopening, he said.
Much the UK retail sector will be reopened next week, as long as the shops are following rules on social separation.
The economy shrank by 24.5% compared to April last year, said the ONS.
Output in the dominant services sector decreased by 19.0 percent compared to March in April, while production declined by more than 24 percent.
The Bank of England and the country’s budget office have admonished that in three centuries this year Britain could be headed for its deepest recession.
Andrew Bailey, BoE Governor, said on Monday that, when lock-down restrictions on coronaviruses were lifted, he could see certain indicators of economic recovery, but warned that long-term financial damage is likely to continue.
On the same day, with its economic forecast to contract 11.5% this year, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development declared that Britain was on course for the greatest recession among the countries it is covering.