LONDON (Reuters) – British finance minister George Osborne should do more to boost investment in Wednesday’s budget, say economists polled by Reuters, although they were split on whether he ought to borrow more to revive the economy.

Osborne is struggling to defend an austerity policy that after three years has delivered almost no growth and slower than planned progress in cutting Britain’s budget deficit.

LONDON (Reuters) – Chancellor George Osborne should do more to boost investment in Wednesday’s budget, say economists polled by Reuters, although they were split on whether he ought to borrow more to revive the economy.

Osborne is struggling to defend an austerity policy that after three years has delivered almost no growth and slower than planned progress in cutting Britain’s budget deficit.

LONDON (Reuters) – The euro zone might escape recession in the second quarter but only because of Germany’s economic strength, according to a Reuters poll on Wednesday that showed no prospect of even a moderate upturn soon.

The latest survey of more than 60 economists represented a slight downgrade to the growth outlook compared with a month ago, reflecting the latest economic data showing France, Italy and Spain in a sharp decline.