The Bank of England’s (BoE) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has today voted unanimously to maintain bank rate at 0.75 per cent.
Furthermore, the committee also voted unanimously to maintain the stock of sterling non-financial investment-grade corporate bond purchases, financed by the issuance of central bank reserves, at £10bn. The Committee also voted unanimously to maintain the stock of UK government bond purchases, financed by the issuance of central bank reserves, at £435bn.
Commenting on the announcement, Zurich head of retail platform strategy Alistair Wilson said: “A flurry of positive economic data would usually signal movement from the MPC and savers would be celebrating a rate rise. However, with the country facing further Brexit delays and uncertainty, the Bank of England’s decision is of little surprise. It will be well into the summer months before we hear any fresh rumours of a rate hike.
“Yet, it’s not all doom and gloom. Employment and wages are on the up and inflation is low, meaning that spending power will be given a boost. Savers need to focus on what they can control. And with tax year end just three weeks away, it can make sense for individuals to maximise their ISA and pension allowances to help grow their wealth over time.”
XPS Pensions Group chief investment officer Simeon Willis: “The UK economy is tentatively shuffling along with declining GDP growth somewhat contradicted by record low levels of unemployment. It would have been problematic for the MPC to have made any sort of change given the current critical political situation as it needs to retain as much flexibility as possible for the rest of the year.”
NEW BUILD IN FOCUS - NEW EPISODE OF THE MORTGAGE INSIDER PODCAST, OUT NOW
Figures from the National House-Building Council saw Q1 2025 register a 36% increase in new homes built across the UK compared with the same period last year, representing a striking development for the first-time buyer market. But with the higher cost of building, ongoing planning challenges and new and changing regulations, how sustainable is this growth? And what does it mean for brokers?
The role of the bridging market and technology usage in the industry
Content editor, Dan McGrath, sat down with chief operating officer at Black & White Bridging, Damien Druce, and head of development finance at Empire Global Finance, Pete Williams, to explore the role of the bridging sector, the role of AI across the industry and how the property market has fared in the Labour Government’s first year in office.
Does the North-South divide still exist in the UK housing market?
What do the most expensive parts of the country reveal about shifting demand? And why is the Manchester housing market now outperforming many southern counterparts?
In this episode of the Barclays Mortgage Insider Podcast, host Phil Spencer is joined by Lucian Cook, Head of Research at Savills, and Ross Jones, founder of Home Financial and Evolve Commercial Finance, to explore how regional trends are redefining the UK housing, mortgage and buy-to-let markets.
In this episode of the Barclays Mortgage Insider Podcast, host Phil Spencer is joined by Lucian Cook, Head of Research at Savills, and Ross Jones, founder of Home Financial and Evolve Commercial Finance, to explore how regional trends are redefining the UK housing, mortgage and buy-to-let markets.
The new episode of The Mortgage Insider podcast, out now
Regional housing markets now matter more than ever. While London and the Southeast still tend to dominate the headlines from a house price and affordability perspective, much of the growth in rental yields and buyer demand is coming from other parts of the UK.
In this episode of the Barclays Mortgage Insider Podcast, host Phil Spencer is joined by Lucian Cook, Head of Research at Savills, and Ross Jones, founder of Home Financial and Evolve Commercial Finance.
In this episode of the Barclays Mortgage Insider Podcast, host Phil Spencer is joined by Lucian Cook, Head of Research at Savills, and Ross Jones, founder of Home Financial and Evolve Commercial Finance.
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