UK's GDP shrinks by record 5.8% in March as Covid-19 pandemic bites

In the first three months of the year, GDOP contracted by 2.0% from the last three months of 2019, the Office for National Statistics said.

Britain's economy shrank by a record 5.8% in March from February as the coronavirus crisis escalated and the government ordered a shutdown of much of the country to stop the spread of the virus, official data showed on Wednesday.

In the first three months of the year, gross domestic product contracted by 2.0% from the last three months of 2019, the Office for National Statistics said.

That was the largest quarter-on-quarter fall since the end of 2008, during the depths of the financial crisis, though slightly smaller than the average 2.5% forecast in a Reuters poll of economists.

It was also a smaller