The British economy shrank in the second quarter for the first time since 2012 as Brexit uncertainties weighed on business investment and firms reduced their stockpiling after Britain was granted an extension to its departure from the European Union, official figures showed Friday.
The decline is set to raise alarm that Brexit uncertainty is increasingly weighing on the economy. Most economists expected the economy to flat-line. The quarterly drop lowered the annual rate of growth to 1.2% from 1.8% in the first quarter. The Office for National Statistics noted there was “increased volatility around the U.K.’s original planned exit date from the European Union in late March.”