THERE will be "no avoiding a recession" following the coronavirus pandemic, the Welsh Government's economy minister Ken Skates has warned.

Mr Skates made the warning at the daily Welsh Government press conference in Cardiff earlier today.

"There can be no doubt of the economic challenge that lays ahead of us as a result of coronavirus," he said.

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"The Office of Budget Responsibility reference scenario depicts the UK GDP falling by 35 per cent in the second quarter of this year.

"There is no avoiding a recession.

"But to avert a major depression, it is imperative that governments across the UK do everything in their power to shelter businesses through this storm and to protect workers from the very great threat of unemployment.

"That is a huge impact on the economy. It's unprecedented in our times but it is also shows why we are absolutely right to spend and to invest with an unprecedented sum of money - almost £2 billion."

He added the Welsh Government was providing support to businesses amounting to 2.7 per cent of the country's GDP, claiming this is "the most comprehensive anywhere in the UK".

"Yes, there are still gaps," he said. "Yes, there is still more that we can do, and yes, there is more that we will do, but I am proud of what we have put in place."

Some of the businesses that are so far falling through the cracks are microbusinesses which are not VAT registered.

"This is a very real concern for us," said Mr Skates. "All of the minds at the UK treasury have been determining how best to support such businesses.

"For the second phase of the Economic Resilience Fund we are prioritising this particular group and looking how we can support them best.

"Our key concern is avoiding fraud, but equally recognising the severity of the adversity, we want to make sure we keep businesses alive during this period."

Mr Skates added that the initially £100 million fund from the Development Bank of Wales for companies experiencing cash flow problems has been fully subscribed with around "1500 to 1600 applicants" - 80 per cent of which are expected to be successful.

"They expect all of that support to get out the door this very month," said Mr Skates.

"We are looking at a further phase of that particular fund. I'm hoping we can make an announcement on that in the not too distant future."