UK will be fastest growing G7 economy this year - IMF

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) upgraded its UK GDP forecast and now predicts the country will see stronger growth than any other G7 economy this year.

The IMF's 2014 UK GDP forecast was yesterday raised from January's 2.4% estimate to 2.9%. That beats even the 2.8% growth forecast for the US, the country widely seen to be experiencing the most sustainable recovery so far. The upgrade marks the first time since April 2008 that UK growth is forecast to be higher than in the US and Germany; the 2015 forecast has also been upgraded from 2.2% to 2.5%. The positive outlook is underpinned by manufacturing figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), also released yesterday. Those figures showed a 0.9% increase in industrial...