The UK's deficit on trade in goods fell to £6.8billion in November compared to the revised £7billion for October. Analysts had predicted a more modest decline of £6.9billion.

It is the narrowest deficit since August 2009 and reflects the weakness of the pound over the past few months.

The depreciation of the currency has made British goods cheaper abroad, which has brought about a solid increase in exports.

Meanwhile, imports have slowed as they became more expensive for UK traders.

Duncan Higgins, senior analyst at Caxton FX commented: "Today's data should be encouraging for the policymakers at the Bank of England who had hoped a weaker pound would bring about a rebalancing of UK trade.

"Although the figures do show only a marginally lower deficit, it is certainly a positive step for the UK economy. Any sign that Britain is bringing its deficit under control should ease ongoing fears and boost demand for the currency."

Data from the Department of Local Government has also shown that housing prices rose by 0.6% last November, making it the first month of positive price growth since the spring of 2008.

It marks the eighth consecutive month of improvement in the housing market, rising from -2.2% in October and ahead of forecasts of just 0.4% growth.

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