The BoE's monetary policy committee today voted 8-1 to raise interest rates 0.25% for the third successive policy meeting. The UK, now back to their pre-pandemic interest rate of 0.75%, finds itself with a lower inflation figure than the U.S. but still at a 30-year high of 5.5%, well above the Bank's 2% target. The Bank forecasts the annual inflation rate will rise to 8% next quarter and potentially even higher in the second half of the year after factoring in the Russian invasion as well as other 'very large shocks'. The quarter percentage point increase was seen as a lower rise than expected, sending the British pound down 0.3% and the FTSE 100 up 0.4%.