Banking
Bank of England slows bond-buying, raises 2021 growth forecast
LONDON (Reuters) – The Bank of England said on Thursday it would slow the pace of its bond-buying as it sharply increased its forecast for Britain’s economic growth this year after its coronavirus slump.
The BoE kept its benchmark interest rate at an all-time low of 0.1% and the size of its bond-buying programme unchanged at 895 billion pounds ($1.24 trillion), as expected by economists polled by Reuters.
But the central bank said it would slow its bond-buying to 3.4 billion pounds a week between May and August, down from its current pace of 4.4 billion pounds a week.
“The expected completion point of the purchase programme remained unchanged. This operational decision should not be interpreted as a change in the stance of monetary policy,” the BoE said.
The central bank raised its forecast for British economic growth in 2021 to 7.25% from its previous forecast of 5.0% made in February, but it lowered its projection for growth in 2022 to 5.75% from its previous estimate of 7.25%.
The BoE also said the economy was set to return to its pre-pandemic size in the last quarter of 2021, earlier than its February projection of the first quarter of 2022.
($1 = 0.7193 pounds)
(Reporting by David Milliken, Andy Bruce and Alistair Smout; Editing by Michael Holden)
-
Top Stories4 days ago
Australia’s ANZ Group to settle credit cards class action for $37.4 million
-
Top Stories4 days ago
Analysis-Spain’s battle of the banks as BBVA narrows gap to Santander
-
Top Stories4 days ago
Talgo’s top shareholder in talks with Stadler over takeover bid, report says
-
Top Stories4 days ago
Google, Apple breakups on the agenda as global regulators target tech