According to the report from Confederation of British Industry (CBI), UK private sector activity was broadly unchanged in the quarter to February.

The composite measure – based on 650 respondents across the distribution, manufacturing and service sectors – showed the balance of firms reporting growth stood at -3%, the weakest since April 2013. This marked the fourth consecutive month of no growth in activity.

The stagnation in overall volumes reflected falling services volumes and slower manufacturing growth, which were partially offset by a rebound in distribution growth. Within distribution, retail volumes continued to fall, for the fourth consecutive month.

Looking ahead, private sector activity is expected to fall slightly over the three months to May (-4%), with services volumes set to fall at a sharper pace alongside similar manufacturing growthю Meanwhile, distribution volumes growth is expected to pick-up.