News about BoE

Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee member Megan Greene said on Oct. 20 that resilient borrowing has left her unsure whether Bank Rate is restraining demand enough to contain inflation before the Nov. 5 decision. She cited £23.6 billion in gross mortgage lending and £2.5 billion in monthly consumer credit in August, and said higher credit costs had done little to reduce borrowing, so the figures did not establish that policy was “meaningfully restrictive.” Greene argued for acting before higher energy costs become entrenched in pay and pricing, and questioned the ONS private-sector regular pay growth of 3.0%, saying forward-looking indicators point closer to 3.5%. CPI inflation was 3.1% in the year through August.