The Bank of England is likely to deliver another interest-rate cut on Thursday, as tax hikes and wary consumers hamper Britain’s economy and prompt firms to slow hiring. The Monetary Policy Committee is widely expected to reduce its benchmark rate by 25 basis points, to 4%, sticking to its once-a-quarter pace of cutting. In contrast to the caution of the US Federal Reserve, which kept borrowing costs unchanged again on Wednesday, the BOE is looking through the fastest inflation in 17 months and focusing instead on growth worries after back-to-back contractions in gross domestic product and mounting job losses over ... (full story)