Bank of England Holds Rates Steady

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The move follows its decision last month to hike rates by a quarter of a percentage point, the first increase in a year. Thursday's move was widely predicted by analysts.

Economist Philip Shaw of Investec Securities said the bank's Monetary Policy Committee "would have wanted to avoid surprising the markets in two successive months."

However, the central bank warned in August that British interest rates may have to rise further in the coming months to keep inflation near its 2 percent target, and many analysts say a rise to 5 percent is likely in the fall.