Growth in the world’s largest economies stuttered in April, a string of closely watched surveys showed, providing the first warning of the damaging effects of President Trump’s tariffs.
British businesses struggled to build on early-year momentum this month amid escalating global trade tensions and a £25 billion rise in companies’ national insurance contributions that took effect in April, prompting warnings of a short-lived recession.
The S&P Global flash composite purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for the UK slid to a 29-month low in April of 48.2, down from 51.5 in the previous month and well below the 50-point mark that separates growth from contraction. The composite PMI measures output across the UK private sector economy. Analysts had expected a reading of 50.4 in April.
The bleaker-than-expected
