Investing.com - The U.K. economy grew less than expected in the fourth quarter of 2014, dampening optimism over the country’s economic outlook, preliminary official data showed on Tuesday.
In a report, the Office for National Statistics said gross domestic product expanded by a seasonally adjusted 0.5% in the final three months of 2014, below forecasts for growth of 0.6%. The U.K.’s economy grew by 0.7% in the preceding quarter.
Year-over-year, U.K. economic growth grew 2.7% in the three months ended December, missing expectations for a gain of 2.8%. The U.K. economy expanded at an annualized rate of 2.6% in the third quarter of 2014.
GBP/USD was trading at 1.5072 from around 1.5090 ahead of the release of the data, while EUR/GBP was at 0.7503 from 0.7494 earlier.
Meanwhile, European stock markets remained lower. London’s FTSE 100 shed 0.2%, the EURO STOXX 50 dipped 0.65%, France's CAC 40 declined 0.5%, while Germany's DAX slumped 0.45%.