- Ben Broadbent, Bank of England policymaker
Following disappointing Inflation Report on Wednesday and boring BoE meeting a week earlier, now it is time for the MPC members to shed light on future moves of the monetary policy.
Following the Inflation Report, one of the MPC members, Ben Broadbent claimed interest rates will not rise until the domestic economy is ready and the first rate hikes will be "gentle". Broadbent will become central bank's deputy governor on June 1. While the central bank left inflation and growth outlooks broadly unchanged, their comments suggest the benchmark rate can rise from a record-low of 0.5% early next year. According to policymakers' projections, the economy can pick up without creating additional inflationary pressure, as the remaining slack in the labour market is bearing down on prices and real wages. Broadbent also claimed workers are finally feeling the recovery in pay, and keeping in mind higher productivity, the unemployment rate will fall further. What is more important, policymakers now focus on whether rapid price growth risk fuelling a big hike in lending.
Future deputy governor commented the situation in the housing market, saying the market is recovering and there are no troubling levels of credit growth. House prices rocketed 10% in the year to April, raising further concerns about the inflating bubble.
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