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Pressure on Bank of England to hike interest rates
All eyes are on Bank of England policymakers on Thursday as they face pressure to lift interest rates in response to rising inflation. Many analysts have predicted that rates will rise to 0.25% when the decision is announced at lunchtime. The UK's main interest rate, set by the Bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), has been at an all-time low of 0.1% since the pandemic began. But prices have been rising sharply since the economy reopened. The Bank itself has acknowledged that inflation could peak at 4% or even 5% before cooling again - far above its 2% target. Charlie Bean, a former deputy governor of the Bank who ... (full story)