UK Interest Rates Expected to be Kept on Hold at 5.75% at November's MPC Meeting

By: Nadeem_Walayat

The Bank of England is expected to keep UK interest rates on hold at 5.75% at Thursday's MPC Meeting despite widespread calls for a cut in interest rates in the face of the latest rate cut in the US to 4.5%, down from 5.25% in September 07.

The ongoing credit crunch continues to claim more victims, which this week claimed the scalp of the worlds biggest bank, Citicorp. The tightening in credit will further squeeze the UK economy and therefore increases the scope for interest rate cuts in the future.

The Bank of England has adopted a wait and see approach before taking the first step in a series of anticipated rate cuts, as the bank evaluates the balance between slowing economic growth and potential risks of inflation on the back of surging commodity prices which are to a large part reacting to the slumping dollar and continuing strong demand from emerging markets.

The Market Oracle forecast as of 22nd August 2007 is for UK interest rates to fall to 5% by September 2008, with the probable date for the first cut being January 2008. The weakening housing market continues to build added pressures for a rate cut. The Market Oracle forecast for UK house prices is for a fall of 15% over the next 2 years (as of 22nd August 2007) .

A string of articles over the past 2 months at the Market Oracle have highlighted the opportunities available to savers to benefit from high fixed interest rates that have now started to be reduced. Therefore savers need to act sooner rather than later as the trend in savings rates is now for lower savings interest rates.

By Nadeem Walayat
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Nadeem Walayat has over 20 years experience of analysing and trading the financial markets and is the Editor of The Market Oracle, a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication. We present in-depth analysis from over 100 experienced analysts on a range of views of the probable direction of the financial markets. Thus enabling our readers to arrive at an informed opinion on future market direction. http://www.marketoracle.co.uk

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