THE BRITISH economy appears to be weathering the cost of living storm as the drag on businesses and households from pandemic curbs peters out.
The scrapping of Plan B restrictions prompted Brits to pour back to high streets, pubs, bars and restaurants, lifting output in the services economy to an eight-month high of 60.8 this month, according to
The sharp turnaround in the fortunes of services businesses marks what is likely to be the end of the virus' influence on the
Almost all Covid-19 restrictions will be ditched this Thursday.
The likelihood of the
"The odds of an increasingly aggressive policy tightening have shortened, with a third back-to-back rate rise looking increasingly inevitable in March,"
The composite PMI, which measures output generated by the
A reading above 50 indicates most businesses said output is growing.
However, inflation possibly peaking above eight per cent, tax hikes and higher interest rates are expected to combine to create the worst cost of living crunch in recent history.
Economists are concerned the potential steepest erosion in real take home pay for decades could trigger a pull back in consumer spending, weighing on
(c) 2022 City A.M., source