The Bank of England expects growth this year to be the slowest since 2009 when the economy was in recession. It is forecasting growth of 1.2% this year, down from its previous November forecast of 1.7%. The Bank said it had seen further evidence that businesses were being cautious in the run-up to Brexit, including evidence from its own survey of firms. As expected the Bank kept interest rates on hold at 0.75%.
Argentina’s gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by 2.9% in 2017, and grew 0.7% in the fourth quarter from the third quarter, a Treasury Ministry source said on Friday, bouncing back from a 2.2% contraction the prior year.