More than four in ten people think that an interest rate cut would benefit the economy according to the Bank of England’s quarterly survey on inflation.
A total of 42 percent of respondents said a decrease in interest rates would be best for the economy, which is up slightly from 41 percent in the previous quarter.
Correspondingly the number of people who thought keeping rates on hold would be best for the economy reduced slightly — from 25 percent in February to 24 percent.
The proportion of people who thought a rate increase would benefit the economy stayed the same at 10 percent.
The Bank of England base rate has remained at a 16-year high of 5.25 percent since last August.
High interest rates on mortgages, credit cards, personal loans and other borrowing have weighed heavily on families, businesses and first-time buyers.
More than six out of 10 respondents (64 percent) said they had seen interest rates increase over the past 12 months on mortgages, loans or savings accounts.
Alongside this there has been a big increase in the value of mortgages that are in arrears, the amount of money outstanding on credit cards and personal insolvencies.
When asked about the future path of interest rates, 34 percent of respondents expected rates to rise over the next 12 months, down from 36 percent in February 2024.
A total of 25 percent said of respondents said they expected rates to stay ‘about the same’ over the next twelve months.
The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee will meet next week to discuss whether there is room to cut the base rate with a decision to be announced on Thursday.
Industry experts believe its experts will be unwilling to make a change that might be seen as favouring any particular party in the run up to General Election 2024.
