BoE leaves key rate unchanged at 5.25%; moves closer to first rate cut since 2020

The BoE said on Thursday its Monetary Policy Committee voted 7-2 to keep rates at a 16-year high of 5.25% after Deputy Governor Dave Ramsden joined Swati Dhingra in voting for a cut to 5%. The MPC has now kept rates on hold at six meetings in a row but it hinted that a first cut since March 2020 at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic could come as soon as its next meeting in June, a potential boost for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.