UK inflation expectations edge up only slightly in June - Citi/YouGov

LONDON, June 23 (Reuters) - The British public's expectations for inflation over the next 12 months rose only slightly in June, a survey for Citi by polling company YouGov showed, in welcome news for Bank of England policymakers who are holding off on raising interest rates.

"Expectations are close to long-run averages, but strong upward momentum that would call for urgent monetary tightening is absent, in our view," Citi economist Christian Schulz said in a note to clients on Friday.

Despite Britain's official inflation rate hitting a nearly four-year high of 2.9 percent in May, respondents to the poll said they expected inflation next June to be 2.62 percent, a 0.05 percentage-point rise from last month's survey.

Longer-term inflation expectations for the next five to 10 years rose to 3.1 percent, up from 3.0 percent in May but below February's 3.2 percent peak, Citi said.

YouGov (LSE: YOU.L - news) polled 2,095 adults on June 20 and 21.

Last week, the BoE (Shenzhen: 000725.SZ - news) 's policymakers voted 5-3 in favour of keeping interest rates at a historic low of 0.25 percent, a narrower vote than expected.

BoE Governor Mark Carney sought to counter speculation about a rate hike on Tuesday by saying he wanted to see the impact of Brexit on the economy over the coming months, despite a strong rise in inflation.

But the Bank's chief economist, Andy Haldane, said on Wednesday he was likely to vote for a rate hike in the second half of this year, barring a further slowdown in the economy. (Writing by William Schomberg; editing by Costas Pitas)