BoE Votes 6-3 Against Rate Hike Amid Middle East Crisis

The Bank of England has left its interest rate unchanged at 3.75% in a split vote, with six members voting against a quarter-point increase.

This decision was made despite the ongoing Middle East crisis and its potential impact on inflation, which BoE Chief Economist Huw Pill and Megan Greene argued should warrant a rate hike.

The central bank acknowledged that inflation has fallen since the previous meeting but is expected to rise later this year as higher energy prices continue to pass through the economy.

However, the BoE stressed that there is 'little evidence so far' of second-round effects in price and wage-setting, against which policy needs to lean. Nonetheless, it noted that the risks to the inflation outlook are tilted to the upside relative to the central projection in the July Monetary Policy Report.