LONDON (dpa-AFX) - The Bank of England kept its interest rate and quantitative easing unchanged, as widely expected, as the economy showed early signs of picking up.
At the final meeting of Mark Carney as BoE Governor, the monetary policy committee decided to maintain the interest rate at 0.75 percent.
Jonathan Haskel and Michael Saunders sought a quarter-point reduction for the third straight meeting, the minutes showed.
The committee unanimously decided to retain the quantitative easing at GBP 435 billion.
Inflation is projected to remain below the 2 percent target throughout this year. It is then expected to rise towards the target over 2021 and reach 2 percent in the first quarter of 2022.
The economic growth remained moderate in 2019 and it is estimated to have been around zero in the fourth quarter. The bank observed early signs of growth picking up.
If growth stays weak, then the bank may need to lower interest rates to support the UK economy and ensure that inflation return to 2 percent target sustainably, the monetary policy report said.
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