Britain’s economy shrank by 5.8 percent in March from February under pressure from the corona crisis and anti-virus outbreak measures. According to the British statistics agency, the strongest shrinkage in a month has ever been measured.

Due to the crisis and the restrictive measures introduced by the British government in March, much of the economy came to a standstill. Many companies in Great Britain closed their doors. These lockdown measures are now gradually being relaxed.

Minuses were seen in all economic sectors, especially in the sizeable British services sector, including catering, retail and aviation. But the activity was also under considerable pressure in industry and construction. Shrinkage is expected to be even more pronounced in April as Britain was really locked for the entire month.

Over the entire first quarter, a contraction of 2 percent was measured compared to the previous period, according to the statistics bureau. This is the sharpest decline since the end of 2008, during the financial crisis.

The British central bank fears that the economy may fall by as much as 14 percent this year. A rebound of 15 percent is predicted for 2021. To combat the crisis, the Bank of England (BoE) has cut rates to the lowest level ever. The British government has introduced support measures for companies to prevent mass layoffs.