0808 GMT - U.K. annual CPI inflation rising more than expected to 3.0% in January from 2.5% in December means it's unlikely that the Bank of England will cut interest rates in March, Abrdn's Luke Bartholomew says in a note. Gradual rate cuts should continue, however, as measures of underlying inflation were more encouraging, with services inflation weaker than expected. "Another rate cut in March looks pretty unlikely, with the Bank [of England] continuing with its gradual pace of easing for now," the deputy chief economist says. Inflation would need to head back towards the 2% target for the BOE to speed up the pace of rate cuts in the second half of the year. (emese.bartha@wsj.com)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 19, 2025 03:08 ET (08:08 GMT)

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