UK interest rates have peaked, the next move is down … but not yet

Bank of England's rate-setting panel is split three ways - to hike, cut or hold -but analysts are now pencilling in a cut for late spring

Interest rates have peaked. The next move in borrowing costs will be down. But not yet. Those were the three key messages from the Bank of England in its latest assessment of the state of the economy.

Those conclusions may not be immediately apparent from the minutes of the latest meeting on Threadneedle Street of the monetary policy committee (MPC) - the body tasked with setting interest rates to hit the government's 2% inflation target - because the MPC had a three-way split.