Trade deficit balloons on car and oil imports.

Britain’s goods trade deficit with the rest of the world rise much more than expected in September to the biggest gap since January, hit by Britain's "cash for bangers" scrappage scheme which has driven a surge in car imports. The Office of National Statistics said today that Britain’s goods rise to £7.2 billion pounds in September from £6.1 billion in August, well above analysts’ expectations for the deficit to remain at £6.1 billion. Today's dire figures emerge ahead of key employment data tomorrow and after official estimates for third quarter gross domestic product (GDP) last month showed that Britain was still in recession. The trade deficit had been narrowing in recent months as economists and policymakers speculated that the weakness of the pound was boosting British exports and helping to rebalance the economy.