 "rishi sunak uk recession")
The economy of the United Kingdom sank into recession in the latter half of last year, giving a major blow to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who had promised to bring the economy on track after assuming office.
High inflation and the rising cost of living crisis were cited as the main reasons for the development as the UK's gross domestic product (GDP) shrank 0.3 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2023 after contracting 0.1 per cent in the prior three months, the official figures showed.
Recession is defined as a period of fall in the GDP in two successive quarters.
Rishi Sunak fails on promises
The India-origin PM, who came into power in October 2022, taking over from Liz Truss' disastrous short-lived tenure, had made five major promises in the first major speech in January 2023. Sunak's promises included halving inflation, curbing the cost of living, growing the economy, reducing debt and fixing the crumbling National Health Services (NHS).
The development is a major blow to the Conservative Party leader, who is already having a hard time quelling the growing dissent on various issues within his right-wing party members. Notably, the country is set to face a general election by January 2025.
Japan loses world's third-largest economy title
The news coincided with Japan losing the title of the world's third-largest economy and slipping into recession. According to the official data released on Thursday, Japan's GDP stood at $4.2 trillion compared with $4.5 trillion for Germany in 2023.
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The Japanese economy shrank 0.4 per cent in the December quarter, compared to 2.9 per cent in the September quarter.
Notably, India is likely to overtake Japan in nominal GDP in a few years.
As of now, the United States remains the world's largest economy with GDP at $ 27.94 trillion in 2023, followed by China at $17.5 trillion. India's GDP stands at $3.7 trillion.
