Bank of England cuts interest rates to 4.5% – consumer credit industry reaction

7th February 2025 Consumer Lending | #interest rates

The Bank of England has cut interest rates from 4.75% to 4.5%, taking the base rate to the lowest level for more than 18 months. The Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has voted to cut interest rates by 0.25% to 4.5%. The MPC voted 7 to 2 in favour of the cut, with two dissenting…

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Interest rates cut to 4.5% – business industry reaction

7th February 2025 Business Lending | #interest rates

The Bank of England’s rate-setting body voted to cut the base rate by 0.25% to 4.5%. The nine-strong Monetary Policy Committee voted by a majority of 7–2 to reduce Bank rate by 0.25%. But two members, Swati Dhingra and Catherine Mann, thought more help was needed and voted for a 0.5% cut. Bank Governor Andrew…

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Homeowner possessions rise but mortgage arrears fall

UK Finance has released its latest data on mortgage arrears and possessions for the final quarter of 2024 with the data showing a rise in housing possession and a slight fall in the total number of homeowner mortgages in arrears. Possession numbers have risen significantly in percentage terms since the artificially low numbers through the…

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SMEs cut debt by £4.4bn across 2024

7th February 2025 Business Lending | #business debt

Analysis of the Bank of England’s data in Ebury’s SME Borrowing Tracker shows that SMEs decreased their debt by £4.4 billion across 2024, reinforcing nearly three years of falling debt among SMEs, following the significant ‘debt pile’ accumulated during the pandemic. However, the final three months of 2024 marked the first quarterly uptick in SME…

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First-time buyers more optimistic about getting on the property ladder

7th February 2025 Consumer Lending | #house buying

After two Bank Rate cuts in 2024, and with markets forecasting further cuts this year, first-time buyers are feeling more optimistic about becoming a homeowner than they were a year ago according to analysis by the Building Societies Association (BSA). The research that more than half of aspiring homeowners (54%) think house prices will continue…

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