BoE says will buy gilts at pace in new stimulus

The Bank of England said it would buy British government bonds at a much faster pace than normal in response to the coronavirus outbreak, part of a major stimulus package it announced on Thursday. "Given prevailing conditions, the Bank intends - at least initially - to make purchases at a materially higher pace than in the recent past," the BoE said in a statement.

The BoE cut interest rates to 0.1% on Thursday, its second emergency rate cut in just over a week, and promised 200 billion pounds of additional bond purchases in a fresh attempt to shield Britain's economy from the impact of the outbreak. The BoE's new gilt purchases will commence on March 20.