The Bank of England kept interest rates on hold at 5.25 per cent for a second month running today.
The move was widely expected, although sterling fell and British interest rate futures rose slightly after the announcement.
"Today's decision seems reasonable in light of economic developments over the past month," said George Buckley, economist at Deutsche Bank. "Stronger data and more stable markets are probably needed for further tightening."
House prices are still racing ahead, by 1.8 per cent in February alone, according to the Halifax survey published earlier today. Manufacturing is also on the up, thanks to strong world growth.
Nor has there has been much evidence that higher borrowing costs have taken the wind out of consumers' sails, despite British household debt topping the one trillion pound mark.
With two members of the nine-strong Monetary Policy Committee having already voted to raise rates last month, economists say another increase could be on the cards in May.
But inflation, at a record high of 3 per cent in December, now appears to be edging down and could fall below the 2 per cent target by the end of the year as household bills come down in line with the turnaround in world energy prices.