Britain holds rates

The Bank of England said it will tie any rise in its record-low interest rate to a drop in unemployment. It will not raise its key rate from 0.5% until British unemployment has fallen to a threshold of 7%.

The Bank of England's current key rate is 0.5%, which the article describes as a record low.

The central bank has set a threshold of 7% unemployment. It says it will not raise the key rate from 0.5% until unemployment falls to that 7% level.

The article states the current British jobless rate is 7.8%.

In this article, 'a break with policy' means the Bank of England changed its approach by explicitly tying any future interest-rate increase to a specific unemployment threshold (7%), rather than following its previous policy framework.

For everyday investors, the key takeaway is that the Bank of England is signalling rates are likely to remain at 0.5% while unemployment stays above 7%. That makes UK unemployment figures a crucial indicator to watch for future rate changes.

No. According to the article, the Bank of England will not raise its key rate from 0.5% until unemployment falls to 7%. With the jobless rate currently at 7.8%, a rate rise is not imminent under this policy.

Investors should monitor official UK unemployment data and any further Bank of England statements. Because the bank tied rate rises to unemployment falling to 7%, changes in the jobless rate will be a key signal for potential future interest-rate moves.