DUN & Bradstreet, the business information company, has flagged the likelihood of UK recession and downgraded the country’s risk rating to “an all-time low”.
In its country insight report into the United Kingdom, which looks at the adverse effects of the coronavirus on the country’s business environment, it said Westminster’s measures were not enough to meet the economic challenge.
It downgraded the UK’s country risk rating by two quartiles to DB3b as the coronavirus pandemic continues to adversely impact opportunities for both traders and investors.
READ MORE: Coronavirus has sent Scottish economy into ‘sharp downturn’
Markus Kuger, chief economist at Dun & Bradstreet, said flagged concerns across sectors, adding: “While the measures implemented by the Prime Minister on March 23 have been introduced to slow the spread and minimise humanitarian damage, the economic impact of the lockdown is set to be significant.
“The coronavirus outbreak has drastically reduced demand in almost every sector, as well as posing supply chain risks, and threatens to lead to a considerable rise in both business failures and unemployment figures.”
Mr Kuger said: “Either way, we believe the UK will almost certainly enter a technical recession in Q2 2020, and real GDP growth for the year as a whole will be the weakest since the global financial crisis when the economy contracted by 4.2% in 2009.”
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