BoE keeps key rate at 0.50 percent

London: The Bank of England left its key interest rate at 0.50 percent in an announcement Thursday following a regular meeting, as British inflation holds at a 14-month low.

BoE policymakers voted 6-3 to keep the rate on hold, down from the 7-2 result last time round, indicating that the central bank could hike borrowing costs at its next meeting in August, matching some analysts´ expectations.

Also at its June meeting meanwhile, the bank voted unanimously to maintain its quantitative easing stimulus policy, under which it has pumped £445 billion ($586 billion, 506 billion euros) around the UK economy.

"A vote of 6-3 to leave interest rates unchanged at 0.5 percent and quantitative easing unchanged... suggests that the Bank of England is closer to the European Central Bank rather than the more aggressive US Federal Reserve in its outlook, with any tightening of monetary policy likely to come slowly and in modest steps," said AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.

The pound nevertheless rallied against the dollar on increased expectations that a rate hike could now occur before the end of the summer.