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Bank of England keeps rates at 5%, extends 100 billion pound bond reduction plan for another year
The Bank of England held interest rates at 5.0% on Thursday and voted to run down its stock of British government bonds by another 100 billion pounds over the coming 12 months, weighing on the government's finances. The Monetary Policy Committee voted 8-1 to keep rates on hold, with only external member Swati Dhingra voting for a further quarter-point rate cut after the BoE last month delivered its first reduction to borrowing costs since 2020. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast a 7-2 vote to keep rates on hold after last month's narrow 5-4 decision to cut rates from their previous 16-year high. On Wednesday, ... (full story)