Rachel Reeves to try to reassure City investors after unexpected UK GDP fall

City analysts had predicted a 0.1% increase in GDP in May. Photograph: Andy Hall/The Guardian

Rachel Reeves will attempt to shrug off the UK’s anaemic economic performance at her Mansion House speech next week, after the latest official figures showed the economy unexpectedly shrank in May.

The chancellor is expected to say the City is at the heart of her vision for sparking economic growth, as she battles to seize back the narrative after worse than expected GDP figures, and a bleak warning from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) about the state of the public finances.