Britain's trade gap widens to £7.6 billion

The Office for National Statistics said latest estimates showed the deficit had been fairly flat in recent months.

Howard Archer, chief economist at Global Insight, said: "UK exporters should continue to benefit from the weaker pound. At the same time, UK imports may be limited by significantly softer domestic demand. But the April data will reinforce the Bank of England's concerns over inflation being fuelled by the weak pound, which pushes up import costs."