Bank of England Holds Steady

By WSJ City 

The Bank of England held its benchmark interest rate steady and said it still expects to begin gently nudging up borrowing costs if the UK's exit from the EU goes smoothly. That comes even as other major central banks change tack amid signs the global economy is losing steam.

KEY FACTS

--- The BOE voted unanimously to leave its main policy rate at 0.75%.

--- It also left its bond portfolio unchanged at GBP435bn.

--- The decision came a day after PM Theresa May requested a three-month extension to the Brexit date.

--- The negotiation period had been due to close on March 29.

--- EU leaders are meeting in Brussels today to decide whether to grant an extension.

Looking Ahead

The BOE said mounting inflationary pressure and a healthy labour market mean it expects to gently raise interest rates over the next two to three years if Britain's EU exit goes smoothly.

ING said it thought it was "too early to completely rule out a rate hike this year -- although of course, this depends almost solely on Brexit."

A fuller story is available on WSJ.com

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 21, 2019 09:56 ET (13:56 GMT)

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