* Bank of England expected to keep policy unchanged
* Central bank waiting for Brexit end-game
* BoE will detail its bond-buying plans for 2021
* Investors listening for clues on negative rates
By William Schomberg
LONDON, Dec 17 (Reuters) - The Bank of England is expected
to refrain from yet more stimulus on Thursday as it waits to see
if a possible no-deal Brexit in two weeks' time deepens the
problems already facing Britain's coronavirus-damaged economy.
London and Brussels are still trying to avoid the shock of
import tariffs on trade from Jan. 1, so the BoE looks set to
leave its bond-buying programme at 895 billion pounds ($1.2
trillion), having ramped it up by 150 billion pounds last month.
That should provide enough fire-power until late 2021, and
the BoE's Monetary Policy Committee is expected to detail how
front-loaded its new bond-buying will be.
The MPC is also likely to keep its benchmark interest rate
at a historic low of 0.1% at 1200 GMT.
"We continue to expect a (Brexit) deal will be done," JP
Morgan economist Allan Monks said. "But the main focus from the
MPC this week will be any guidance it chooses to offer about how
it would react to a no-deal."
Last month, the BoE said it was "ready to take whatever
additional action is necessary to achieve its remit".
Now it might have to be more explicit, with the Brexit
deadline approaching and COVID-19 restrictions spreading again.
Britain's budget forecasters say a failure to strike a trade
deal would wipe 2% off economic output, drive up inflation and
unemployment and add to public borrowing of 400 billion pounds
this year.
Even with a deal, the BoE thinks the economy will suffer as
companies struggle with paperwork, port delays and other effects
of leaving the world's biggest single market.
For now, with a Brexit deal still possible and COVID-19
vaccines being administered, the MPC is likely to be relatively
calm about the outlook.
Unemployment has not risen as sharply as the BoE predicted,
and surveys of businesses have suggested the economy might
shrink by less than its forecast of 2% in the fourth quarter.
The BoE's bond-buying programme is widely seen as its most
likely weapon should it need to return to the stimulus pumps.
But investors are watching for any fresh signals on Thursday
about the feasibility of taking interest rates below zero.
The BoE has asked banks what a move to negative rates -
something imposed already in the euro zone and countries such as
Japan - would mean for them. On Monday, HSBC and Santander
representatives said they were not ready for such a move.
($1 = 0.7409 pounds)
(Writing by William Schomberg; Editing by Hugh Lawson)