London, October 30: Gordon Brown’s claim that Britain was “better placed” than other wealthy countries to beat the economic downturn returned to haunt him yesterday as the US recession officially ended.
The Conservatives were quick to point out that this meant that Britain alone, of the major economies, is still officially in recession. Figures for the third quarter of 2009 showed that the US economy, where the current crisis began, has at last returned to growth. China, Japan, France and Germany have also returned to economic growth, but Britain’s economy shrank again during the same quarter.
–Agenices