The Bank of England halved its growth projection for the British economy this year as it cut its main interest rate Thursday for the third time in six months. In a statement, the bank's nine-member Monetary Policy Committee lowered its main interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point to 4.

The Bank of England on Thursday halved its forecast for UK economic growth this year, blaming global risks amid US tariff threats and deteriorating business confidence in the UK.The sharp downgrade, which estimates gross domestic product at 0.

The Bank of England cut interest rates by a quarter-point and some policymakers wanted a bigger move to offset a slowdown, but the BoE said it would be careful about further moves in the face of an expected inflation spike and global economic uncertainty.