Britain bounced back from recession more strongly than previously thought at the end of last year, leading experts to say that the recession is over properly - at least for now.

The economy grew by 0.3% in the final three months of last year, rather than 0.1% as previously estimated, according to revised figures from the Office for National Statistics. A small boost for Gordon Brown's government ahead of the election.

Does this mean we're out of the woods? No, unfortunately not. The spectre of a double-dip recession and potentially a sterling crisis still loom on the horizon.

British consumers are feeling much more confident about the economy and their own finances now than they were 12 months ago, according to Britain's largest building society Nationwide.

Its latest Consumer Confidence Index, published today, shows that 73% of Britons are now confident about the future, up from just 39% in January last year.

Things look grim up North.

Britain's North-South divide is set to get worse in coming years, with economists predicting a two-speed recovery that will exacerbate the already existing income gap.

Brighton and Barnsley will fare very differently as they bounce back from recession.

As the North depends much more on the government for spending and jobs than the South, it will be hit hard by public spending cuts in coming years. That means it risks being left behind while the rest of the country recovers from the downturn.

All regions should return to growth this year following last year's worst economic slump on record. But London and the South East will enjoy a much swifter recovery than the struggling North, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Britain finally emerged from recession at the end of last year, but only just.

It ended with a whimper, not a bang.The economy only managed growth of 0.1% in the fourth quarter, disappointing all those who had hoped for a decisive return to growth. The number took City economists by surprise who had forecast 0.4%.

It was the longest recession in Britain's history, lasting a year and a half, and now it is officially over. Britain is the last of the major economies to come out of recession.

But this doesn't mean it's plain sailing from now on. Recovery is going to take years and no one is ruling out a double dip where the economy tips back into recession after a few months of lacklustre growth.

A study out today calculates that the number of people who have lost their jobs in the recession is far higher than the official figures show. In fact, it estimates that the real figure is double the government numbers, and stands closer to 1.3 million.

So where does this difference come from, and why does it matter?

The pound has perked up a bit lately but there is no escaping the fact that going abroad has become much more expensive in the last couple of years.

Anyone going skiing in France or Austria this winter will feel the pain as they have to shell out much more for ski passes, chalets and food than they used to.

Why has the pound fallen so much and is there any hope that it could become stronger by the time we go on our summer holidays?

Retail sales were a washout last month, because shops kept their prices high. So retailers actually had quite a good Christmas, with higher prices sending the shop tills ringing. But it was bad news for shoppers.

By contrast, last Christmas, at the height of the recession, many retailers panicked and brought their sales forward. There was much less discounting this time round as the feeling was that the economy is over the worst.

There was another steep fall in the dole queues last month, raising hopes that the economy is finally emerging from recession.

The number of young people out of work also dropped, although employment rates among youngsters remain shockingly low.

City economists predict more "modest" job losses this year but everyone hopes we are over the worst now.

Inflation shot up to 2.9% last month - much more than expected.

The record jump, from 1.9% in November, was due to a number of factors depressing prices the same time a year earlier, including the emergency VAT cut, sharply lower oil prices, and pre-Christmas sales on the high street.

Together they meant the anual inflation rate rose far beyond the Bank of England's 2% target.

Today's nasty shock immediately sparked fears of higher interest rates.

Why is the UK the last G20 nation still mired in recession?

Well, the financial crisis has shown the drawbacks for a FIRE economy like the UK.

That's an economy driven by Finance, Insurance and Real Estate.

The good times in finance and real estate are all too clearly dependent on rising prices. Rising shares and house prices, for example, not only create work for estate agents, solicitors and stockbrokers but also pump up tax revenues.

When prices head south, jobs and tax revenues go with them. Alongside the public sector, the financial industry has been a major driver of job creation in recent years.

It has been another grim year for the world economy, but 2009 could have been a lot worse than it was.

Some had predicted a re-run of the Great Depression of the 1930s, but to everyone's relief most major economies – with the notable exception of the UK – pulled out of recession by the summer. The year ended with fresh crises in Dubai and Greece, though.

Banks were little chastened by the crisis and were soon back to their old ways. Ignoring calls for restraint, they tried to pay themselves massive bonuses as though nothing had happened.

Walletpop looks at the main financial events of the year.

After the global economy suffered another bad year and recovery looks to be slow and protracted, we look back at some of the lighter moments of 2009.

Pundits were divided over what shape the global slump would take: a W i.e. double-dip downturn, or a saxophone-shaped recovery, anyone?

As we near the end of a turbulent year for our finances, we look back at some of the highs and lows as reported on Walletpop...

The UK has always had a bit of a superiority complex. For all sorts of complicated historical reasons we believe our small country has all sorts of rights - to win the World Cup, to be the best at the sports we invented, and to have some sort of world strength economically.

However, a leading think tank has predicted that by the year 2015 our days as an economic powerhouse will be firmly behind us.

We're currently the seventh biggest economy in the world, but at that point we will apparently drop out of the top ten.

We've already seen our relative power in free-fall in recent years. We were the fourth-largest in 2005, but overtaken by China in 2006, France in 2008 and Italy this year.

So what are we doing wrong, and why does it matter?

Hopes that Britain's recession may have ended in the summer were crushed by official figures yesterday morning, and the outlook for the next few years is decidedly gloomy.

That means the UK is still lagging behind the recovery in every other major economy.

Which doesn't bode well for our spot on the world stage.

Cheerful news for Christmas anyone?

Ever had that feeling that there's a really great party going on and you're not invited?

The Eurozone officially came out of recession this month. France and Germany came out so long ago, they've probably forgotten it ever happened. Even Japan, which has been the sick man of the developed markets for twenty years, is now officially out of recession.

So why is the UK sitting at home in its prom dress, waiting for an invite to the recovery party?