BUSINESS leaders have welcomed the announcement by the Office for National Statistics that inflation continues its downward trend and has fallen to 1.6 per cent from 1.7 per cent in February.

Sharon Williams, acting chief executive of Herefordshire and Worcestershire Chamber of Commerce, said: "We are very pleased to say that in Herefordshire and Worcestershire overall, the latest GDP figures from our quarterly economic survey support our view that the UK’s economic recovery remains on course. Domestic sales and orders have showed an overall improvement and have increased for both services and manufacturing firms.'

Tim Pile, president of Birmingham Chamber of Commerce, added: "This fall in inflation is encouraging news for businesses as consumers will have more money to spend and, along with recent drops in unemployment, is another indicator that the UK is on its way back to economic growth.”

Despite the slowdown in the pace of inflation, due to lower fuel prices and food costs, the latest quarterly economic survey shows that 41 per cent of manufacturers believe that the price of goods and services will increase. This is the highest number since 2011.