A slump in manufacturing in July and a sharp widening of the trade deficit show Britain’s economic recovery is losing some steam and may prompt the Bank of England to stress that it is in no rush to raise interest rates from crisis-era lows.

Ben Broadbent and Nemat Shafik will become deputy governors at the Bank of England as Mark Carney leads the biggest management shakeup since the institution gained independence in 1997.

Britain’s recovery from recession is turning out to be an uneven one and the government is still waiting for the shift to an export- driven economy it vowed after the financial crisis.

Britain’s budget deficit widened to the biggest on record for any August, data showed yesterday, a day after the central bank governor said overshooting budget targets may now be acceptable.

STERLING fell sharply against the dollar yesterday after keenly anticipated growth data showed Britain had emerged from recession in the fourth quarter but at a much slower pace than expected.