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BoE maintains ultra-low interest rate for 75th month

Xinhua, June 4, 2015 Adjust font size:

The Bank of England (BoE) monetary policy committee Thursday voted to keep its main interest rate Bank Rate unchanged at 0.5 percent, and quantitative easing (QE) policy at 375 billion pounds (or 576 billion U.S. dollars).

It is the 75th consecutive month that the central bank maintaining the ultra low interest rate unchanged. The decision is within the market's estimation consensus.

The BoE cut the interest rate to a record low of 0.5 percent in March 2009, to mitigate impacts brought about by the financial turmoil and euro zone sovereign debt crisis.

The previous change in the size of that QE scale, or asset purchasing program, was an increase of 50 billion pounds to a total 375 billion pounds in July 2012.

British consumer prices index (CPI) declined by 0.1 percent in the year to May 2015, the first time that CPI has fallen over the year since 1960 based on comparable historic estimates, according to the Office for National Statistics.

The minutes of this month's policy meeting will be published on June 17. (1 pound = 1.536 U.S. dollars) Endit