The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) sets monetary policy to meet the 2% inflation target, and in a way that helps to sustain growth and employment. At its meeting ending on 3 February 2021, the Committee judged that the existing stance of monetary policy remains appropriate. The MPC voted unanimously to maintain Bank Rate at 0.1%. The Committee voted unanimously for the Bank of England to maintain the stock of sterling non-financial investment-grade corporate bond purchases, financed by the issuance of central bank reserves, at £20 billion. The Committee voted unanimously for the Bank of England to ... (full story)

Britain’s banks need at least six months to prepare for any cut in interest rates to negative territory, the Bank of England said on Thursday as it kept its stimulus programmes on hold ahead of an economic recovery later this year. The central bank published results from its review of how prepared lenders like HSBC, Lloyds and Barclays would be to implement negative interest rates for the first time. “The Prudential Regulation Authority’s engagement with regulated firms had indicated that implementation of a negative Bank Rate over a shorter timeframe than six months would attract increased operational risks,” the ... (full story)