UK rates likely to go up in May but follow-up move unlikely - Reuters poll

Interest rates in the UK are likely to go up in May, but most economists polled by Reuters do not see a follow-up move for another year. 

Key points (Source: Reuters)

• Only a slight majority, 36 of 63 economists or 57 percent of the sample, are expecting a May rise to 0.75 percent. 
• About 60 percent of poll respondents see Bank Rate at 0.75 percent at year-end and a third say 1.25 percent at end-2019, with one rise each in the second and fourth quarters.
• Inflation is set to slip from 3 percent presently to 2.2 percent a year from now, averaging 2.5 percent this year and 2.1 percent next, unchanged from the poll taken in mid-February.