Bank of England Cuts Main Rate a Half Point to 1%

The lowest rate since 1694? This is not the "run of the mill" financial crisis dear reader. Is there any doubt that gold is going much higher?-Lou

Bank of England Cuts Main Rate a Half Point to 1%

Feb. 5 (Bloomberg) -- The Bank of England lowered the benchmark interest rate to 1 percent, extending the most aggressive round of cuts in its three-century history as officials try to limit fallout from the deepening recession.

The nine-member Monetary Policy Committee, led by Governor Mervyn King, cut the bank rate to 1 percent from 1.5 percent. That’s the lowest since the central bank was founding in 1694 by William III to fund a war against France. The move matched the median estimate of 61 economists of a Bloomberg News survey.

The U.K. economy will shrink the most since 1946 this year and faster than any other industrialized country, International Monetary Fund forecasts show. Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s government has given the central bank powers to spend up to 50 billion pounds ($73 billion) on bonds and commercial paper as interest rates lose their potency to aid economic growth.

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http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=ajtgG7qtp_10&refer=worldwide