In the economic gloom of Labour’s first year in power, Rachel Reeves has had a reliable shred of comfort to cling to: five times since the general election, the Bank of England has cut interest rates.
This week, in all likelihood, the chancellor will get a sixth to shout about, as Threadneedle Street prepares to reduce borrowing costs in an early Christmas present that will be seized upon by the Treasury.
The view in the City is that a festive cut on Thursday is odds-on. After last week’s disappointing October growth figures, the jobs market and consumer prices data due out on Tuesday and Wednesday – before the rates decision – are expected to confirm that inflationary pressures in the UK economy are fading.
But while a cut will be good news for businesses, mortgage borrowers and
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