THE region is set to benefit from an economy firing on all four cylinders, according to the latest Ernst & Young forecast.

The figures, released today, predict a UK economy in good shape for 2004 and beyond, with expected GDP of 3.5 per cent this year and three per cent in 2005.

Professor Peter Spencer, economist at Ernst & Young, said: "With a global economy firing on all four cylinders and a UK economy in its best shape since the late 1990s, we can look forward to robust growth over the next two years."