Bank of England to announce interest rate decision, after first raise in US for three years

Bank expected to hold rates - but there could be a surprise published at 11:01 BST Faisal Islam Economics editor I’m on my way into the Bank of England for an interest rate decision, as I have done - on and off! - for over a quarter of a century. While the Bank is widely expected to hold rates at 3.75%, other major central banks - including the US Federal Reserve - are now raising rates, as rising energy prices feed into higher inflation. The expectation among economists however is that the nine-member committee which decides rates will keep them on hold today, with a rise in November or December.

There is, though, the recipe for a surprise rise here. The energy market scenario is tracking worse than the adverse scenario outlined by the Bank earlier in the year. There have been splits in recent months, as the Bank weighs up whether rising inflationary pressures are largely contained in energy prices.

And the complex business of Bank of England’s sale of its stocks of government debts also looms large. It could help calm debt markets. Government borrowing costs have risen substantially, into rather painful territory, in the UK and around the world in recent weeks.

Source: bbc.co.uk