LONDON, Nov. 4 (Xinhua) -- The European Commission (EC) on Tuesday raised its growth forecast for Britain in 2014 and 2015, simultaneously lowering its estimates for growth in the eurozone.
British gross domestic product (GDP) is pegged to grow 3.1 percent this year and 2.7 percent in 2015, up from projections of 2.7 percent and 2.5 percent in May, the EC said in a statement.
The British economy will continue growing amid "robust" spending by consumers and businesses, the EC said.
By contrast, however, eurozone GDP growth this year is expected to be 0.8 percent, lower than the 1.2 percent predicted earlier. The 2015 growth forecast was also cut to 1.1 percent from 1.7 percent.
British business investment will accelerate to between 7 percent and 10 percent a year from 2014 to 2016, up from 3.2 percent in 2013. The inflation rate will pick up to 1.9 percent by 2016, up from the current 1.2 percent, but still remain below the central bank's 2 percent target, said the commission.
The budget deficit will decline to 3.2 percent of GDP in the fiscal year 2016-2017, from the 5.2 percent for the year ending March, data showed.
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