LONDON, July 23 - Following is a selection of economists' reactions on the minutes of the Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee's last meeting on July 10 which showed a vote of 8-1 for a quarter point cut.
STEVE BARROW, STRATEGIST, BEAR STEARNS
"This is a fairly good vote. Some people see a big majority as giving a good sign for furture policy. I don't go along with that view. I don't think it's a good sign. Although we think the Bank of England will cut rates again, I don't necessarily think that because we have a big majority, another rate cut is definitely a done deal. "For a start, MPC members focused to some extent on the strength in sterling. Subsequent to that meeting of course, sterling has been hit rather hard. That in itself means the market should not necessarily take the size of this vote as a clear sign that rates will be cut again."
PHILLIP SHAW, ECONOMIST, INVESTEC
"Not surprisingly the vote for lower rates was overwhelming, also it is significant that the new governor (Mervyn King) proposed this at his first meeting. There was some dissent, but we don't see that as necessarily having big implications for policy going forward. Overall we see rates remaining on hold over the rest of the year." //