Preliminary UK economic growth data, due at 0830 GMT Wednesday, will likely make grim reading. The consensus among economists polled by the news agencies is that GDP expanded by just 0.3% in the second quarter of the year, up from 0.2% in the first quarter but just half the average of the three previous quarters. The numbers will cover the three months from April to June, including both the UK general election on June 8 and the start of the Brexit talks on June 19, and if the economists are right the year/year growth rate will drop to 1.7% from 2.0%. They will provide confirmation that the first-quarter slowdown was ... (full story)