INTEREST rates have been held after low inflation and ongoing economic concerns held off a hike.
The Bank of England's decision means the UK is heading for six years of rates at the historic low of 0.5 per cent.
Inflation is at a 12-year low of one per cent and expected to fall further with the slide in oil prices, meaning experts see little reason for an increase in the cost of borrowing.
Many analysts expect rates will not rise until the end of this year at the earliest and possibly not until 2016.
However, James Knightley of ING Bank said there were signs 2015 will see improving pay and spending, bringing forward the date.
He added: "This combination of rising wages and strong consumer demand leads us to believe the Bank will start to raise interest rates from August onwards."
The Bank also voted to leave the scale of its quantitative easing (QE) programme to boost the money supply unchanged at £375bn.
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