Breaking news: MPC stands firm on QE

THE Monetary Policy Committee today resisted calls to inject more money into the economy.

A series of gloomy forecasts and data on the economy, including disappointing manufacturing figures this morning, were not enough to convince the Bank of England committee to expand its QE programme for the second time in three months.

The MPC injected £75bn in October taking the total to £275bn.

The British Chambers of Commerce had argued the case for a fresh round of QE worth £50bn to stimulate the economy.

Coverage of the MPC’s decisions is brought to readers of TheBusinessDesk.com in association with stockbrokers Redmayne-Bentley.

Senior stockbroker David Scott said: “As expected the Bank of England left its key interest rate at a record low 0.5% today, where it has stayed since March 2009, reflecting the fact the Britain’s economy still remains very fragile and the country is set for lower inflation, with it having fallen to 4.8% in November from 5% in October.

“In the first meeting of the New Year, it also kept quantitative easing at £275bn, although expectations are for a further tranche possibly as soon as next month.”

Close