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Economic growth across the UK has slowed to its weakest point since last spring’s lockdowns, as the omicron variant of Covid-19 hits confidence.
The CBI’s latest survey of private sector growth, released this morning, shows that growth in the three months to December dipped to its lowest since April.
Its index of private sector growth fell to +21% vs +32% last month, with business and professional services, consumer services and distribution firms all reported slower growth.
The slowdown coincided with the discovery of Omicron, and the introduction of measures to slow its spread which have hit hospitality and retailers hard.
And looking ahead, growth is expected to keep slowing, with consumer services firms expecting activity to decline in the next three months. That would drag on the economy,…