UK hikes policy rate to almost 15-year high

The Bank of England on Thursday hiked its policy interest rate by 25 basis points to nearly a 15-year high of 4.25%.

Seven of the Monetary Policy Committee's nine members backed the move, while two voted for keeping the rate unchanged, the central bank said in a statement.

The borrowing costs have now reached the highest level since October 2008.

This is the bank’s 11th consecutive rate hike since December 2021 to tame high level of inflation rates, which surged to 10.4% in February.

"The MPC will continue to monitor closely indications of persistent inflationary pressures, including the tightness of labour market conditions and the behaviour of wage growth and services inflation. If there were to be evidence of more persistent pressures, then further tightening in monetary policy would be required," the bank added.