Will the Bank of England push rates up with war set to drag spending power down?

Conflict in Ukraine means January's GDP boost is unlikely to last, but Threadneedle Street still seems obsessed with curbing inflation

Soaring gas and electricity prices, high inflation, the worst squeeze for living standards in decades ... The economic outlook was challenging even before Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Now conflict on European soil and economic warfare through sanctions has added to the pressure.

This week the Bank of England is expected to raise interest rates in response to inflationary pressures, as the war pushes up already high energy prices. It will be adding to the cost-of-living crisis by increasing the cost of borrowing, but the idea is to stop high rates of inflation becoming more permanent.