The Bank of England kept its base rate on hold at 4.75% on January 13th. But the monetary-policy committee (MPC) will undoubtedly have discussed new signs of weakness that look to make 2005 a testing year for the economy. In November, the Bank scaled back its forecast for growth in 2005 (see chart). Since then, it has become more worried about the slowdown in global growth. When it met in December, the MPC noted that world activity had been weaker than expected. It even discussed the possibility of reducing interest rates, although no member voted in favour of a cut.
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