FX.co ★ UK services companies report rise in profits

Britain’s services companies reported the first rise in profits during the past quarter over the last two years.

According to the Confederation of British Industry, in general volumes in the services sector rose at the fastest pace since August 2015 in October-January. Profits grew too.

In the fourth quarter, the UK economy grew at a slower pace than initially estimated, as higher inflation weighed on consumers and businesses, official data showed.

Britain’s gross domestic product expanded by 0.4% sequentially instead of 0.5% reported initially, the second estimate from the Office for National Statistics showed.

Year-on-year, the economy advanced by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, marking the slowest pace of growth over the past five years.

The growth estimate for full-year 2017 was revised down to 1.7%, the weakest since 2012.