British economy to weaken further due to Brexit uncertainty: BCC

LONDON, March 18 (Xinhua) -- The outlook for Britain's economy looks weak in terms of business investment and trade amid the continued Brexit uncertainty, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said on Monday.

According to BCC, business investment is expected to decrease by 1 percent in Britain in 2019 compared with the previous year.

Growth in the dominant services sector is expected to weaken to 1.1 percent in 2019, while the manufacturing and construction sectors are estimated to shrink by 0.5 percent and 0.7 percent, respectively.

Suren Thiru, head of economics at the BCC, said: "The downgrades to our near-term growth outlook are a further indication that the UK economy is set to remain on a historically weak growth trajectory for some time to come, unless decisive action is taken."

"Brexit uncertainty, the financial squeeze on business and consumers and a slowing global economy are expected to weigh significantly on business investment and trade and limit the extent to which consumer spending will be boosted by a stronger real wage growth," Thiru added.

Adam Marshall, BCC's director general, commented that "it is clear that political inaction has already had economic consequences, with many firms hitting the brakes on investment and recruitment decisions as a result of ongoing uncertainty."

"The economy is currently growing sluggishly at best, but a messy and disorderly exit from the EU would do real and lasting damage to the UK's economic prospects," Marshall added.

Marshall urged policymakers to take action soon, saying that "Once no-deal (Brexit) on March 29 has been averted, the attention and energy of both Westminster and Whitehall must return to the UK growth agenda."

"If the UK economy is to have a shot at escaping a Brexit-induced black hole, practical growth issues here at home need to be tackled urgently," Marshall added. Enditem