by Shaloo Shrivastava and Jonathan Cable

BANGALORE/LONDON (Reuters) – The Bank of England (BoE) is expected to raise its key rate yet again, to 5.50% at its meeting on September 21, even though a significant minority of economists polled by Reuters expect the recovery to go beyond this year.

While the other major central banks tend to signal, or have already realized, a pause in raising their rates, the BoE is still struggling to contain inflation despite 14 rate hikes in a row.

Britain’s consumer price index (CPI) slowed to 6.8% year on year in July, from 7.9% in June, but remains well above the bank’s 2% target center and one of the highest in Western Europe.

Still, the latest Reuters survey of BoE intentions shows economists expect the key rate – currently at 5.25% – to spike to 5.50% from 5.75% predicted in July. .

“The August meeting started to set the stage for a break. rates will stay high for a long time,” observes James Smith at ING.

“It all depends on the data. Ideally, the authorities would like to stop raising rates, given that they are restrictive. By November, the Federal Reserve will have finished its hikes and potentially the European Central Bank, there therefore has a risk of being perceived as the last ‘hawk’ somewhat unnecessarily”.

Reuters’ survey of economists shows a median expectation of a policy rate pause after September. But 47% of the 62 economists surveyed believe that the rate could still be raised: 27 of them see the peak at 5.75%, two at 6.00%.

(Reporting by Shaloo Shrivastava and Jonathan Cable; investigation by Mumal Rathore, Rahul Trivedi and Purujit Arun; Blandine Hénault for the , editing by Kate Entringer)

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