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[Bank of England Expected to Hold Rates Steady This Week, Key Turning Point in Rate Cuts] 1. The Bank of England will hold its next policy meeting this Thursday, with the market widely expecting it to pause its rate cuts and maintain the current benchmark interest rate of 4%. If this expectation comes true, it will be the first time the Bank of England has slowed the pace of monetary policy easing since it began its rate-cutting cycle last year. However, due to recent weak inflation and wage data, some analysts are open to the possibility of an unexpected rate cut at this meeting. 2. Looking back at the last policy meeting in August, the Bank of England decided to cut rates by 25 basis points by a narrow 5-4 vote, highlighting significant disagreements within the Monetary Policy Committee. At that time, Governor Bailey publicly stated in September that the previous pace of "cutting rates every three months" had become "more uncertain," suggesting that future interest rate decisions would rely more on data performance rather than a predetermined path. 3. Recent economic data has introduced new uncertainties to the market. In September, UK inflation did not rise to 4% as the Bank of England had expected, while wage growth slowed further and the unemployment rate rose. These signals have reignited market expectations for a rate cut in November. Financial market pricing on Friday indicated that investors saw about a one-third probability of a 25 basis point rate cut on November 6th, while the probability of a rate cut before the end of the year rose to two-thirds. Goldman Sachs also changed its stance last week, predicting that the Bank of England would take action at this meeting. However, most opinions still lean towards the view that the Bank of England will choose to wait and see this week. A recent market survey shows that slightly more than half of the economists surveyed expect the central bank not to cut rates again before 2026. James Smith, an economist at ING Group in the Netherlands, predicts that this meeting will again result in a 5-4 split vote, but the result will be to keep rates unchanged. He emphasized that whether action will be taken in December remains unknown and will largely depend on the content of the budget announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer on November 26th. Nomura Securities economist George Buckley also pointed out that "this is not an easy decision for the Monetary Policy Committee," and he expects a 5-4 vote to cut rates at this meeting. According to his analysis, Governor Bailey, the two deputy governors, and the two external members may jointly support easing policy. Regardless of the outcome, this meeting will serve as a crucial window into how the Bank of England balances slowing economic growth with easing inflationary pressures.