The UK economy shrank more than expected in April as President Trump’s tariffs on countries around the world had a significant impact. The standard measure of economic output (GDP) contracted by 0.3%, which is sharper than the forecast of 0.1%. This contraction is also down from the growth of 0.2% recorded in March.
The main contributor to this decline was the US, where goods exports decreased by the largest ever monthly fall due to tariffs imposed by President Trump’s “Liberation Day”. The services sector contracted by 0.4%, while manufacturing dropped by 0.9%. Car manufacturing saw a poor performance after a strong showing in the first three months.
Higher minimum wages and employer national insurance contributions also had an impact on businesses, leading to additional costs. This is not just bad news for the economy but also for Chancellor Rachel Reeves, who has made economic growth her top priority. The chancellor described the figures as “disappointing”.
Source: https://news.sky.com/story/uk-economy-contracted-sharply-in-april-after-trumps-tariffs-13382404