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STORY: Europe got more big rate hikes on Thursday (December 15) - to absolutely no one’s surprise.

The Bank of England lifted its benchmark rate by half a percentage point to 3.5%, marking a ninth straight rise.

Despite signs that a recession is looming, it also warned of more hikes to come.

The bank says inflationary pressures remain high, and the labor market is still tight.

Governor Andrew Bailey says that justifies further forceful measures.

Investors now expect rates to peak at just under 4.5%, slightly down on earlier bets.

There was a similar story over at the European Central Bank.

It raised rates by half a percentage point, taking the benchmark to 2%.

That was its fourth straight increase.

And bank President Christine Lagarde kept further raises very much in play, warning it would take years to get inflation back down to target levels:

"We decided to raise interest rates today and expect to raise them significantly further because inflation remains far too high and is projected to stay above our target for too long."

Thursday’s increase was, however, at least a little smaller than the three-quarter point hikes of previous months.

Global stocks slid following the increases, which came after a similar move the U.S. Federal Reserve a day earlier.

In Europe, the regional Stoxx 600 index was down close to 3% by mid-afternoon.