Consumer spending and business investment helped the U.K. economy to its longest stretch of growth since the financial crisis as trade continued to act as a drag. Gross domestic product rose 0.3 percent in the first quarter, matching an initial estimate, the Office for National Statistics said in London on Thursday. It was less than the 0.4 percent increase forecast by economists in a Bloomberg survey. While the economy has expanded for nine straight quarters - - the longest sprint since 2008 -- there is little sign of the shift away from consumer spending promised by David Cameron five years ago. The prime minister ... (full story)