British Chamber of Commerce with a latest report published overnight 12 Dec
- 2.1% GDP growth 2016, up from the 1.8% it forecast just three months ago.
- UK GDP to grow 1.1% next year, weakest since 2008
- 1.4% in 2018.
A separate report on business conditions from accountancy and services group BDO found business output rose for the first time in November after 17 months of decline.
It said this suggested that "for now" the UK economy had stabilised "in a lower gear" than it had been running at before the referendum.
However, it said, business optimism was continuing to fall, and it expected "a bumpy road ahead in 2017 for British businesses and the economy"
The BCC is a national body of 52 accredited chambers of commerce across the UK, representing over 100,000 businesses in total.During the EU referendum it decided not to campaign for either side because its membership was split.
BCC DG Adam Marshall said that firms' "business as usual" approach since the EU referendum had helped keep conditions buoyant so far, but it expected the fall in the value of sterling to start to have a greater impact.
"Lower sterling and rising inflation are now starting to affect business communities and consumers across the UK,"
He urged the government to do as much as it could to help UK firms overcome risk, saying it should start by clarifying the future status of existing EU workers as soon as possible "to end the insecurity now facing employees and businesses alike".
Cautious tones understandably with Article 50 not yet triggered and much negotiating to be done.
Meanwhile GBPUSD 1.2588 finding sellers at 1.2600 but underpinned by softer EURGBP which itself is capped at 0.8400 for the moment.