Bank of England leaves interest rates on hold and lowers inflation forecast amid Middle East ‘uncertainty’ – business live

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news, including the latest UK jobs report and the Bank of England’s interest rate decisionTesco’s UK sales growth has more than halved as it said the conflict in the Middle East had created “ongoing uncertainty for many households”, knocking its shares in early trading.The UK’s biggest retailer said comparable sales rose 1.8% to £13.4bn in the three months to the end of May, below both the 4.2% reported in the previous quarter and the 2.3% growth City analysts had expected. Continue reading...