Interest rates in the UK have been held at five per cent for the fifth month in a row as bankers grapple with a stalling economy and rising inflation.
The Bank of England announced the hold as Britain sees growth halt amid warnings a recession is on the way.
Some called for a cut next time around, with inflation currently more than double an official two per cent target.
Quoted by the BBC, TUC head of economics and social affairs Adam Lent called the decision “depressing”.
“A cut today would have offered hope to all those who fear for their jobs and homes, and helped cut through the economic pessimism that is now doing as much damage as the credit crunch and energy prices”
, he said.
Figures suggest UK house prices have fallen by more than 10 per cent in the last year, while the economy is currently stagnant and expected to shrink later in 2008.
Other commentators were less bothered by the rate hold, saying it bared little relation to certain economic factors.
Louise Cuming, head of mortgages at moneysupermarket.com, said: “Monetary Policy Committee decisions have become increasingly divorced from the actions lenders take.
“There is still a lack of funding and aversion to any risk in the mortgage market and this will continue to be the driving force behind product pricing, not the decisions made by the MPC.”
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