Remember 1694? No? Well, the Bank of England has cut the benchmark interest rate “to the lowest since the central bank was founded in 1694 as policy makers tried to prevent the credit squeeze from deepening Britain’s recession,” says Bloomberg.

The bank rate was reduced a half-point to 1.5 percent, bringing policy makers closer to the point at which they will run out of options to fight the financial crisis with conventional tools. The pound rose against the euro and the dollar because some investors had bet on a larger reduction.

Just for a little perspective, let’s look at some events that happened in the good old 1690s.

In 1694, the French philosopher Voltaire was born. You may know him as the fellow who pointed out that “If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent him.” Speaking of God, the Roman Inquisition was going strong during the 1690s, a decade that also saw the extinction of the Dodo, the establishment of the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia and the Salem Witch Trials.

BOE Cuts Rate to Lowest Since Bank’s Creation in 1694 [Bloomberg]
(Photo: Ballista )

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