Bank of England holds interest rates at record low

First announcement from the Bank under the new Conservative government leaves interest rates at 0.5%. All eyes now on Mark Carney's appearance on Wednesday

The Bank of England has left interest rates on hold at their record low, as widely expected, and financial markets are now looking to Governor Mark Carney's appearance on Wednesday for more clues on when borrowing costs will rise.

The Bank's latest monthly announcement on Monday was moved from Thursday last week to avoid a clash with the general election. The nine members of the monetary policy committee met on Thursday and Friday last week and so the outcome of the election would have been clear when they voted to leave interest rates at 0.5%.