Bank's outlook wintry for UK economy

The Bank of England gave a dismal forecast for the British economy on Wednesday, predicting inflation to rise to about three percentage points above its target and growth to fall sharply.

The Bank's latest Inflation Report shows growth will likely be broadly flat in 2008, with the balance of risks moving to the downside. Inflation will rise to about 5% in the coming months, but the economic slowdown is expected to bring it back to target by the middle of 2010.

Commenting on the projections, w