Bank of England raises discount rate

The Bank of England has increased base rate to 1% from 0.75% after the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted in favor of a rise, Report informs referring to MSE News.

The base rate is used by the central bank to charge other banks and lenders when they borrow money – and influences what borrowers pay and savers earn.

The increase means it is the fourth time in quick succession that the central bank has increased rates after it first lifted them to 0.25% from 0.1% in December last year. It then upped them to 0.5% in February, and to 0.75% in March.

The rise follows predictions from the Bank of England that inflation could hit around 10% or even higher later in the year. Inflation stood at 7% in the 12 months to March 2022, according to the most recent figures from the Office for National Statistics.

As of May 4 2022, the total stock of assets held in the Asset Purchase Facility (APF) was £867 billion, comprising £847 billion of UK government bond purchases and £19.6 billion of sterling non-financial investment-grade corporate bond purchases.