The UK economy grew by 0.6% in the first three months of this year, according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics on Friday. This exceeds forecasts of 0.4% given by both the Bank of England (BoE) and economists polled by Reuters. The GDP result also brings the UK out of last year’s shallow recession, marked by two consecutive quarters of declining output. Last year, the economy contracted by 0.1% in the third quarter and 0.3% in the fourth quarter. GDP on a monthly basis grew by 0.3% in January, an upwardly-revised 0.2% in February, and 0.4% in March. Friday’s data will c…