ADVERTISEMENT

BOE’s Bailey Says Goal Is To Curb Inflation, ‘No Ifs Or Buts’

Inflation in the UK currently stands at 9.1%, and is forecast to exceed 11% later this year.

BOE’s Bailey Says Goal Is To Curb Inflation, ‘No Ifs Or Buts’

Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey stressed that are “no ifs or buts” to his aim of bringing inflation back the central bank’s 2% target, adding policy makers are prepared to act “forcefully’ to achieve that goal.

The comments, made in a speech that mainly dealt with longer-term policy issues, reinforce a growing view that the BOE is prepared to risk growth, or even spark a recession, in order to bring price gains to heel. 

Inflation in the UK currently stands at 9.1%, and is forecast to exceed 11% later this year. In response, the BOE has hiked rates at five straight meetings, taking the benchmark to 1.25% from 0.1%, and investors are almost fully pricing in a rare half-point increase next month.

“Bringing inflation back down to the 2% target sustainably is our job, no ifs or buts,” Bailey said in London on Tuesday.

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com

©2022 Bloomberg L.P.