12 April 2012
Prospects for the UK have worsened while other nations begin an earlier than expected recovery from recession, an economic body has warned.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) said the UK economy would shrink by 4.7% this year - worse than its 4.3% forecast in June.
Its UK verdict is far below the 3.5% decline predicted by the Treasury, and contrasts with the improved prospects for other major nations compared with the OECD's last round of forecasts.
The OECD said developments had been "mostly favourable" in recent months although headwinds such as high unemployment and house price falls meant the recovery was "likely to be modest for some time to come".
