BoE expected to leave interest rates and QE alone
The Bank of England is expected to keep interest rates and quantitative easing the same.
The Bank of England is expected to leave both its quantitative easing (QE) programme and interest rates as they are when the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) convenes again.
According to analyst surveys by various news organisations, it is very likely these will be kept the same, as governor Mervyn King and the MPC watch the economy to see how it responds to its ongoing Funding for Lending Scheme (FLS).
Currently, the central bank's QE programme is set at £375 billion after receiving a £50 billion boost in July 2012, while the benchmark interest rate has been at its record low of 0.5 per cent for three years.
It is hoped the flagging economy will benefit from FLS, which involves offering participating lenders cash at better-than-market rates for them to pass these savings on to their customers – namely first-time buyers and small businesses.
After the last MPC meeting, member Paul Fisher told Reuters he would be waiting for signs inflation in the UK was dropping before calling for further stimulus.
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