Daily Telegraph: "Economy '14pc smaller' than it would be"

Link to Daily Telegraph

"The UK economy is 14pc smaller than it would have been had growth stayed on the trend set before the recession struck, according to Bank of England rate-setter David Miles.

"The scale of the relative decline is deeper than any recession of the past 100 years, and is nine per cent lower than the 1973 crisis, the next worst downturn. Mr Miles said:

"The structure of this recession is different. It was triggered by what was probably the largest banking crisis in the UK’s history."

"... Mr Miles also recognised that some measures suggested the UK was operating at its productive potential, which would suggest more quantitative easing would boost inflation. But in words that echoed the International Monetary Fund, he said the alternative could be worse."

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Link to The Guardian

The Guardian: "Retail figures plunge as frugal Britons postpone summer shopping trips"

"The precarious state of the high street was underlined when official figures showed that last month saw the biggest plunge in spending for two years – and experts predicted that many more shops will go bust this year. Wet weather throughout April contributed to a worse-than-expected 2.3% fall in sales volumes. 

"The grim headline figure was blamed on a sharp drop in demand for fuel after panic buying in March distorted the normal buying pattern, However, the Office for National Statistics data also reflected a collapse in demand for clothing and shoes, as the wettest April since records began saw frugal Britons postpone buying their new summer clothes."