The previous change in Bank Rate was a reduction of 0.5 percentage points to 0.5% on 5 March 2009.
The Committee also voted to maintain the stock of purchased assets financed by the issuance of central bank reserves at £375 billion.
On Wednesday, the Bank of England will publish an open letter from the Governor to the Chancellor of the Exchequer following the release of data for CPI inflation of 0.0% in March.
Nick Dixon, Investment Director at Aegon UK, commented:
“The Bank of England holding rates at 0.5% is unsurprising as there are few catalysts for a rate increase in 2015. On the contrary, the triple alliance of muted inflationary pressure, low wage growth, and sterling strength has put paid to this until at least 2016.
“Looking long-term however, the current yields on bonds show the market has underestimated the turbulence future rate increases could have on the economy. It will certainly be challenging for the new Conservative-led government to reduce spending or raise taxes, and with fiscal policy set to be looser than planned, more hawkish monetary policy may well be required to tame the threat of future inflation during this Parliament.”
Jeremy Duncombe, Director, Legal & General Mortgage Club, added:
“Although the day of the base rate announcement has moved this month, the base rate itself has not. This is not surprising as inflation remains at very low levels.
"Low interest rates are good news for those who are looking to remortgage as the rate set by the Bank of England is one of measures which banks use to decide what rates they will offer consumers. In terms of mortgages we are currently seeing some exceptionally low rates being offered to consumers. Someone who is looking to remortgage from a SVR on to one of the more competitive deals available at the moment could save themselves hundreds of pounds each month or the equivalent to giving themselves a pay rise. We would advise anyone looking to remortgage to speak an adviser who will be able to make sure they are on the best deal for their circumstances.”
