The UK economy is expected to shrink by 9.5% in 2020 as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, the Bank of England has warned.
According to Mirror UK, this would be the biggest annual decline in 100 years, however it said the impact would be less severe than the initial 14% forecast.
The Bank added that the jobs market recovery would take longer, with UK unemployment expected to jump to 7.5% by the end of the year.
Its nine-strong Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted unanimously to hold rates at 0.1%.
The MPC said its central projection forecasts that GDP will continue to recover in the near-term, but is not expected to exceed its levels from the end of 2019 until at least the end of 2021.
Rates have already been slashed twice, from 0.75%, since mid-March as part of the Bank’s measures to try and keep the economy afloat.
“The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee MPC will continue to review the appropriateness of a negative policy rate as a policy tool alongside its broader toolkit,” the Bank of England said.
“The MPC has other instruments available – for example, asset purchases and forward guidance. The MPC will continue to assess the appropriate monetary policy stance and will keep the appropriate tools for achieving its remit – including negative policy rates – under review.”
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