Exports to EU plunge by 40% in first month since Brexit

Fall in exports worth 5.6bn comes as UK economy in January suffers deepest drop since first wave of Covid pandemic

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UK exports of goods to the EU plunged by 40.7% in January as the first month since Brexit and the imposition of a new Covid lockdown resulted in the biggest monthly decline in British trade for more than 20 years.

In the first month since leaving the EU on terms agreed by Boris Johnson's government, the Office for National Statistics said goods exports to the bloc fell by 5.6bn, while imports fell by 28.8%, or 6.6bn.

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