Eurozone interest rate cut by 50 basis points

After the Bank of England’s unprecedented 150bps cut earlier today, this means the ECB rate is now higher than the BoE rate – and substantially above the US Fed Funds rate of 1%. The ECB has a specific mandate to target inflation, which has led it to hold off on cuts in recent months while the US in particular has been slashing rates to boost its ailing economy. The BoE too has deemed the economic slowdown more problematic than an inflation rate still running well above target. William Dinning, head of strategy at Aegon Asset Management, commented: “We are surprised that this BoE action...