Consumer spending and investment lead UK to 9th quarter of growth

London

CONSUMER spending and business investment helped the UK economy to its longest stretch of growth since the financial crisis as trade continued to act as a drag.

Gross domestic product rose 0.3 per cent in the first quarter, matching an initial estimate, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said in London on Thursday. It was less than the 0.4 per cent increase forecast by economists in a Bloomberg survey.

While the economy has expanded for nine straight quarters - the longest sprint since 2008 - there is little sign of the shift away from domestic demand promised by David Cameron five years ago. The prim…