News Summary: Britain dodges recession
News Summary: Britain avoids recession as economy expanded 0.3 percent in first quarter
In this photo taken Friday, April 5, 2013, Christophe, a volunteer from France, arranges items of clothing to give to people at a food bank in St Luke's Church in the West Norwood area of London, Friday, April 5, 2013. It’s possible that official figures on first quarter economic growth, to be released Thursday, could put the country back in recession. It would take the smallest statistical variation to put the figure in negative territory which would place the country in recession, another recession _ the third since the 2008 financial crisis _ and is already being referred to with foreboding in the media as a “Triple Dip". (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)
THE DODGER: Britain dodged a third recession after official figures showed the economy grew 0.3 percent in the first quarter compared with the previous three months.
SLIM GROWTH: The figure released Thursday by the Office for National Statistics was above analyst forecasts for 0.1 percent growth and allowed the country to avoid a so-called "Triple Dip" — a third recession since the 2008 economic crisis.
THE POLITICS: Britain's government desperately wanted a robust number to justify its austerity policies, and seemed at least pleasantly surprised.
