'3 rate cuts' coming after IMF warning

THE Bank of England is forecast to cut interest rates three times this year amid financial turmoil from Donald Trump's trade war.

- GRAHAM HISCOTT

The International Monetary Fund also warned the UK is likely to suffer a spike in inflation, fuelled by higher energy and water bills, and average 3.1% this year.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves, who flew to Washington, DC last night for the IMF's spring meeting, seized on its forecast of UK growth by 0.1% for 2028 and 2029.

The IMF expects the economy to grow by just 1.1% this year, compared with its previously forecast 1.6%, then rise by 1.4% in 2026 - down from its last estimate of 1.5%.