Bank poised to pump £50bn into economy

The Bank of England is expected to pump another £50bn of quantitative easing into the UK economy today, in a bid to tackle the latest downturn.

The move would take the quantitative easing (QE) programme to a staggering £325bn, and would be the first time since October that the Bank has intervened.

Last time the Bank acted by raising QE from £200bn to £275bn.

Intervention now is expected after recent data showed the UK hangs on the verge of recession.

The latest official figures showed the economy contracted by 0.2% in the last quarter of 2011.

The ongoing eurozone debt crisis has also contributed to an uncertain outlook, but against this, recent upbeat data from the manufacturing, construction and service sectors have hinted at a recovery.

The likely prospect of a new EU/IMF bailout for Greece, meanwhile, has also helped steady markets.

However, QE remains likely given inflation is supportive. The latest reading showed CPI index inflation easing from 4.8% in November to 4.2% in December.