Figures due later today are expected to confirm that the UK came out of recession in the final quarter of last year.

The latest gross domestic product (GDP) figures from the Office for National Statistics are expected to mark the end of the longest recession since official records began in the 1950s.

The economy has contracted for six consecutive quarters, to a total of 6 per cent.

While the UK is one of the last major economies still in recession, there have been signs of recovery. Last week, official figures showed that unemployment had fallen for the first time in 18 months.

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