The Bank of England downgraded the UK's growth forecast to 1.4% in 2011 on Wednesday morning, and warned Britons of a "sluggish" economy.
Mervyn King told journalists that inflation could hit 5% this year but would most likely fall in 2011.
He said the biggest risks to the UK economy came from abroad: "There is a limit to what UK monetary policy can do... monetary policy cannot influence inflation over the next few months."
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King warned the outlook for the global economy had "deteriorated" in the wake of stock market turmoil in August.