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mpc: 20 A rise in the official repo rate was widely expected. Out of 43 economists polled by Reuters in the week before the meeting, 37 expected a 25 basis point increase. A few commentators had suggested that a rise of 50 basis points was possible. And the short-term yield curve was as steep as at any time since the Committee's inception in 1997; short sterling contracts implied an expectation that the official repo rate would exceed 5% in early 2005.