The Bank of England has hinted that its rate cuts may be coming to an end

The Bank of England reiterated its guidance to "take a gradual and cautious approach" to further cuts in borrowing costs, but added a new thread to its message on the outlook, suggesting that its rate-cutting operation may be coming to an end. The Bank of England said that "monetary policy has become less restrictive as interest rates have been cut," and stopped saying directly that policy remains restrictive. The Bank reiterated that there is no pre-set path on the interest rate front. Halting the rate-cutting process would be a blow to Chancellor Reeves and Prime Minister Starmer, who have been struggling to deliver on promises to voters to accelerate Britain's sluggish economic growth. Bailey said the decision to cut rates for the fifth time since last August was "very balanced", although he believed rates were still on a downward path.