"We are revising our Bank Rate forecast and now look for just one more 25bp hike to 5.5% in September," NatWest Markets' chief UK economist, Ross Walker, wrote in a note to clients.

"The apparent rowing-back in the MPC's policy-tightening guidance leaves us comfortable maintaining our negative bias on sterling," NatWest added.

(Reporting by David Milliken; Editing by William Schomberg)