Published by Mark Smith-HalvorsenThe base rate of interest in the UK is unlikely to go up from its current low before the start of 2012, an expert has argued.Ed Stansfield, chief property economist at Capital Economics, said he believes the recovery has not yet gained enough traction to warrant an interest rate rise."As the fiscal squeeze begins to bite and the public sector job losses begin to mount, I think the Bank of England, on balance, might keep interest rates at half a per cent until at least the end of the year," he said, adding that fundamentals remain "pretty soft".His comments follow research from Lloyds which revealed that a third of Brits believe interest rates will rise at some point during the summer months.In total, 62 per cent of survey respondents said they believed interest rates will have risen before the start of next year.Rates have been at a record low of 0.5 per cent since March 2009.For more information on international payments, visit our Smart FX site