Comments from the Bank of England MPC member
- Must be ready to deploy, as and when needed, all the tools available to the MPC
- We expect UK to return to pre-pandemic growth rates but will not make up for lost time and this, at least in the medium term, the level of economic output is permanently lower or 'scarred'
- My views on the supply outlook are balanced
- Likely that the majority of industries will return to the workplace when the pandemic restrictions are lifted, lessening the impact of structural change from this quarter
- Vaccines and consumer spending are potential upside risks
- Little risk of sustained upside inflation
Haskel is a dove and this fits with that. I just can't see the BOE loosening further though, not with 20 million Britons already vaccinated.
I do sympathize with his point that the transition away from government support is a considerable test for the economy. Everyone is watching and waiting for central banks to tighten but fiscal policy is the first round of tightening and the first challenge.