BoE Seen Hiking Rates Four Times Amid UK Economic Resilience

The Bank of England is expected to raise interest rates four times over the coming year as the economy defies energy price pressure, according to a report from Yahoo Finance. Money market traders are betting that rates will climb from 3.75 percent to 4.75 percent by July next year.

This prediction comes after official data showed the UK economy expanded by 0.4 percent in July, contradicting expectations of a slowdown due to high energy costs. Andrew Wishart, senior UK economist at Berenberg, noted that this unexpected growth suggests interest rates are not as restrictive as previously assumed.

Rising oil prices have also driven mortgage rates to their highest level in five months and pushed the cost of long-term government borrowing to its highest level since 1998, with the UK 10-year gilt yields standing at 5.35 percent on Friday.