Britain’s economy showed no growth in April in a blow to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s hopes of hanging his election campaign on an economic recovery.
An exceptionally wet month ruined the numbers said the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which had already led to predictions for GDP being sharply reined back.
Spending on services grew for the fourth month in a row but falls in production and in the construction industry offset this.
Between January and March, the economy had seen the sharpest rise for two years with a 0.4% improvement in March.
Paul Dales of Capital Economics said: “Overall, despite the stalling of the recovery in April, the dual drags on economic growth from higher interest rates and higher inflation will continue to fade throughout the year.
“That will generate a bit of an economic tailwind for the next government.”
Production output dropped by 0.9% in the month, down from a growth of 0.2% in March, with manufacturing as the key driving force after it suffered a 1.4% decline.
Construction output shrank by 1.4% in what was its third consecutive monthly fall but was helped slightly by services rising by 0.2%, marking the fourth straight month of rises
Pharmaceutical products and preparations slumped by 6.1%, while food products, beverages and tobacco dropped by 2.3%.
Meanwhile, output of water supply, sewerage and waste management rose by 1.3%, outperforming the mining sector which rose by 0.8% and the electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning output which grew by 0.5%.
George Lagarias, chief economist at Mazars, said: "British GDP was flat in April, but still came in slightly ahead of expectations.
"April’s dismal retail sales had prepared investors for a slowdown, so the number didn’t come as any sort of surprise.
"Going forward, however, we remain positive."