The Bank of England raised interest rates in the United Kingdom on Thursday to combat surging consumer prices, becoming the first central bank among the world's leading economies to do so since the coronavirus pandemic began. The U.K. bank was joined by Norway, which hiked its benchmark interest rate in the face of troublesome levels of inflation. Central banks typically raise rates to fight inflation and lower them when economies are weak, as they were during the pandemic. The eurozone's inflation rate is 4.9 percent, highest since statistics started in 1997, though the central bank says much of that is temporary. At first glance, the central bank moves seemed to show a disconnect from government warnings about the spread of Omicron and the accompanying new travel restrictions and testing requirements.

Source: The Times December 17, 2021 02:16 UTC