Worries over rising inflation pressures mean the Bank of England will be far less aggressive than the US Federal Reserve in cutting interest rates, minutes of the monetary policy committee’s January meeting signalled on Wednesday.

The MPC felt that “the short-run inflation outlook had worsened markedly” as sterling’s sharp decline exacerbated the effects of higher commodity prices, and that a second period of inflation significantly above target, after last spring’s peak, could lead people to expect higher future inflation.