Bank of England's Pill says central bank may be able reconsider rates stance next year

LONDON (Reuters) - Bank of England Chief Economist Huw Pill said on Monday that by the middle of next year the central bank may be able to reconsider its stance on interest rates.

"It is at that point you might consider or reassess, if nothing new has happened, where we are going to have to be," Pill said during an online presentation organised by the BoE.

"But, of course, it is very unlikely that nothing will change over that nine-month period."

Last week the BoE held its benchmark rate at a 15-year high of 5.25% and said it was not thinking about cutting it as it continued to focus on bringing down inflation.

(Reporting by William Schomberg, Editing by Andrew MacAskill and Sachin Ravikumar)