Bank holds interest rates and keeps QE on ice

The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee has resisted calls for further quantitative easing and has left its programme of stimulus unchanged, while holding rates.

Following its latest monthly meeting, the MPC said in a statement interest rates remain at the record low level of 0.5%, while QE has been held at £325bn. There had been growing expectations that, with the economy shrinking and the latest stimulus programme coming to an end, a further injection would be announced. The Bank has opted against additional stimulus for now, despite recent woeful economic data and the worsening sovereign debt crisis in Europe. The latest readings showed the UK economy fell back into recession in Q1, after official figures showed GDP fell by 0.2%, followi...