UK economy not expected to return to pre-COVID levels until 2022

The United Kingdom is set for one of the slowest recoveries among wealthy nations, according to forecasts published on Tuesday by The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

The OECD estimated a 4.2% fall in global GDP this year, and a 4.2% increase next year. However, it projects that Britain’s economic output will fall by 11.2% this year, while the unemployment will peak at 7.5% next year.

The body also said that Britain’s economy will likely still be 2.4% smaller at the end of the 2022 than it was before the pandemic hit, and predicted that “business investment will remain weak due to spare capacity and continued uncertainty”.

Britain’s economic contraction is found to be the second most severe, only exceeded by Argentina at 12.9 %.

While the world economy is set to return to and exceed pre-Covid levels by Q4 next year, the UK is still estimated to be 7% smaller by this time in 2021.