The pandemic has battered the British economy, which has suffered its deepest recession in more than 300 years.
(AP Photo/Matt Dunham)LONDON – Official figures show that the British economy ended 2020 on a stronger footing than previously thought but that it suffered a bigger than anticipated fall in output in the immediate aftermath of the first coronavirus lockdown.
In its latest revisions for 2020 data, the Office for National Statistics said Wednesday that the British economy contracted by 19.5% during the second quarter, the first full quarter of lockdown.
Overall, the agency said, the British economy ended 2020 9.8% smaller, slightly better than the previous estimate of 9.9%.
The U.K. as a whole has had Europe’s deadliest coronavirus outbreak, with over 126,000 people having died after testing positive for COVID-19.