The Bank of England held its regular meeting to discuss interest rates last Thursday.
They voted to hold interest rates at 4.5% as had been widely expected prior to the meeting.
The Bank targets an inflation rate of 2% and has already predicted that inflation will rise this year before dropping at the end of the year. However, inflation for the 12 months to January 2025 increased to 3.0% from 2.5% in December, a much higher and faster increase in inflation than had been expected.
The Bank have been taking a cautious approach to reducing the rate, and more cuts are expected during 2025. However, with the increases in the amount of national insurance paid by employers and national minimum wage rates taking effect in April, the Bank is having to tread a fine line between slowing price rises and risking damaging the economy by having rates too high.
From April 2026, banks and payment service providers will face stricter rules around how and when they can close customer accounts, under new legislation aimed at improving transparency and giving people and small businesses more time to respond to account closures.
From 1 July 2025, UK businesses involved in cross-border disputes will benefit from a major change in how their legal judgments are recognised overseas, thanks to new international rules being introduced under the 2019 Hague Convention.