ECB cuts rates; U.K. cuts rates and shifts to "quantitative easing"

There's some more news on the global interest rate front this morning. First, the European Central Bank cut its benchmark rate by 50 basis points to a record low 1.5%. Second, the Bank of England reduced its benchmark rate 0.5% from 1% and announced it will buy as much as $211 billion in government and corporate debt as part of a quantitative easing program. This is full-scale monetization, something that is almost unprecedented in a modern, advanced economy. Long-term U.K. debt prices surged, helping drive U.S. bond prices up as well.