Bank of England hikes interest rates again as prices surge

By DANICA KIRKA
Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — The Bank of England has raised interest rates for the second time in three months. That decision Thursday puts the United Kingdom far ahead of the rest of Europe and the U.S. in moving to tame surging inflation that’s squeezing consumers and businesses. The bank boosted its key rate 0.5% from 0.25%. It also said it would begin reducing holdings of U.K. government bonds and corporate debt, which the bank has built up since the global financial crisis more than 10 years ago. Meanwhile, the U.S. Federal Reserve says it’s likely to raise interest rates in March, while the European Central Bank gave no indication it would hike rates this year.