Surprise as Bank of England tightens early

The Bank of England raised interest rates by a quarter-point on Thursday 3 August, bringing the official bank rate to 4.75% after a year on hold.

Although the decision was expected to be more contested than recent months, economists had predicted that any rate rise would be saved for later in the autumn. Caught off balance, UK equity markets fell sharply immediately following the announcement. There had been little appetite for change among the members of the rate-setting monetary policy

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