Royal Institute for Traditional Arts launches training on Al-Qatt Al-Asiri art    Nearly 2 million worshippers prayed in Rawdah at Prophet's Mosque during Hajj 1446    Saudi Arabia expands tech talent schools to five regions for 2025    Aubameyang exits Al Qadsiah as club turns to youth with Retegui signing    France withdraws troops from Senegal, ending military presence in West Africa    Germany's Merz and UK's Starmer sign 'first of its kind' defense and migration treaty    Norway leads Europe's best airports list    Syrian forces leave Sweida after ceasefire with Druze militias goes into effect    Main stage at Belgium's Tomorrowland music festival completely destroyed by fire    Sports vehicles can have now short number plates    Saudi Arabia draw Iraq and Indonesia in 2026 World Cup Asian play-off group    Saudi conjoined twins Yara and Lara successfully separated in 12.5-hour surgery    Babies made using three people's DNA are born free of hereditary disease    'Art of the Kingdom' exhibition to open in Beijing's National Museum on July 30    Saudi minister holds strategic AI and tech talks with French institutions in Paris    ASICS and Saudi Sports for All launch startup pitch to boost sports innovation in Saudi Arabia    Youth-led Saudi businesses exceed 474K    Scientists recover proteins from a 24 million-year-old rhino fossil    Jorge Jesus returns to Saudi Arabia as Al Nassr head coach on one-year deal    Jannik Sinner beats Carlos Alcaraz to win his maiden Wimbledon title    Sholay: Bollywood epic roars back to big screen after 50 years with new ending    Ministry launches online booking for slaughterhouses on eve of Eid Al-Adha    Shah Rukh Khan makes Met Gala debut in Sabyasachi    Pakistani star's Bollywood return excites fans and riles far right    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



UK hit with recession warning as Brexit battle builds in parliament
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 18 - 07 - 2019

Britain might be entering a full-blown recession that a no-deal exit from the European Union would compound, blowing a 30 billion-pound hole in the public finances, a budget watchdog said on Thursday.
As lawmakers prepared for a vote that could hinder any attempt by the next prime minister to pursue a no-deal Brexit, the Office for Budget Responsibility said the economy probably flat-lined or might have contracted in the second quarter.
Some of that weakness may have been payback after a rush to build up inventories before the original Brexit deadline in March.
"But surveys were particularly weak in June, suggesting that the pace of growth is likely to remain weak," the OBR said it said in a report on the outlook for the public finance.
"This raises the risk that the economy may be entering a full-blown recession."
Britain's economy slowed by less than feared after the 2016 Brexit referendum. But many investors are worried about a sharp downturn now with the latest Brexit deadline approaching on Oct. 31 and the world economy slowing because of trade tensions.
A no-deal Brexit could cause the economy to contract by 2 percent by the end of 2020, the OBR said, referring to International Monetary Fund forecasts.
It could also add 30 billion pounds ($37.4 billion) a year to public borrowing by the 2020/21 financial year, the OBR said, more than doubling the expected deficit.
The EU's chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, said in an interview to be published on Thursday that he was unimpressed by threats of no-deal Brexit, but that if the United Kingdom opted for such a course it would have to face the consequences.
Despite previous warnings of the damage that a no-deal Brexit could do to the economy, both contenders to become prime minister next week say they would leave the EU without a transition agreement to soften the shock, if necessary.
With a majority of Britain's lawmakers opposed to a disorderly exit, some have questioned whether Boris Johnson, favored to replace Theresa May, would suspend parliament in order to deliver Brexit by the next deadline.
On Wednesday he refused to say whether he would go ahead with such a plan, but he did say it could be convenient for him.
Sky News said on Tuesday that Johnson was considering holding the Queen's Speech, in which the prime minister lays out a policy program, in November. That means lawmakers would be sent home two weeks earlier, hampering their ability to stop Britain's leaving the EU without a deal on Oct. 31.
British lawmakers were due to vote on Thursday on a beefed-up proposal aimed at making it harder for either Johnson or his rival Jeremy Hunt to force through a no-deal Brexit by suspending parliament.
Concerns about a no-deal Brexit, which have weighed heavily on the value of sterling, have mounted as the leadership contest has progressed. The OBR said promises by the candidates of higher spending and tax cuts would also put a strain on Britain's finances.
"The spending control framework seems to be under pressure, with major announcements being made outside fiscal events, and the Conservative leadership making pledges that would prove expensive if pursued," it said.
Finance minister Philip Hammond, who supported Remain in the 2016 Brexit referendum, used the report to renew his criticisms of supporters of a no-deal Brexit
"I greatly fear the impact on our economy and our public finances of the kind of no-deal Brexit that is realistically being discussed now," he told Reuters on the sidelines of a Group of Seven finance ministers meeting in France. — Reuters


Clic here to read the story from its source.