Commenting on the UK economy set to achieve the expected 7.25% growth forecast in 2021, Rupert Thompson, Chief Investment Officer at Kingswood, said: “The UK economy held up better than expected during lockdown in the first quarter. GDP posted a 1.5% drop over the quarter as a whole but encouragingly grew a larger than expected 2.1% in March as the economy started to reopen. These numbers will bolster hopes that the economy will achieve the 7.25% growth forecast by the Bank of England – the fastest growth in seventy years. Along with the jump in business confidence seen in April, they suggest the Bank’s growth forecast might even be on the conservative side – as indeed is the view of Andy Haldane the Bank’s Chief Economist.”