© Reuters. A man talks on a mobile phone as people walk past the Bank of England, in LondonLONDON (Reuters) – Members of the Bank of England interest rate setting committee were speaking in parliament on Tuesday. They also supplied statements to the Treasury Committee. Below are some of their comments:
DAVID RAMSDEN, DEPUTY GOVERNOR, ON INFLATION
“Measures of domestically generated inflation are consistent with there still being some slack in the economy: they generally remain a little below levels consistent with the 2 percent target.
“Despite continued robust growth in employment there is no sign of second round effects onto wages from higher recent inflation. Earnings growth has seen some pick up when comparing the latest three months on the previous 3 months, but year-on-year growth is little changed of late.
“Inflation expectations appear well anchored, despite the sharp rise in headline inflation, which is evidence of the ongoing credibility of the Bank’s inflation target and remit.”
RAMSDEN ON LABOR, CAPITAL INVESTMENT
“Companies are holding onto labor, it would seem, but there is not very much capital investment.”
RAMSDEN ON INVESTMENT
“I see a real risk that as a result of the process of Brexit and the evolving uncertainties around it, business investment could turn out weaker than in the central forecast. If this were to happen then business investment growth would not necessarily compensate for sluggish consumption growth over the forecast.”
RAMSDEN ON LEARNING LESSONS FROM FED
“I will watch with interest as the FOMC (Federal Open Market Committee) embarks on its program of gradual reduction of the Federal Reserve’s balance sheet, and seek to apply any lessons learned for our own operations.”
RAMSDEN ON CONSUMER SPENDING
“Consumers surprised us with their resilience in the immediate aftermath of the referendum, and they may do the same again over the forecast horizon as the trough of the squeeze in real incomes passes.”
RAMSDEN ON ASSET VALUATIONS
“Looking across a range of UK and overseas markets, including residential and commercial property markets, and equity and corporate debt markets, we can observe valuations that seem elevated relative to historical experience.”
RAMSDEN ON BUSINESS ACTIVITY
“Over the fifteen months since the referendum it has become much more widely understood that the process of leaving the EU will be complex – with implications for the degree of uncertainty that businesses and households are going to have to cope with. There are signs that this uncertainty is now weighing on business activity.”
RAMSDEN ON BREXIT TALKS
“Were developments in negotiations to give confidence that a deal could be struck and a disorderly exit avoided, it could buttress demand in the economy by reducing the probability attached to tail risks.”
RAMSDEN ON DERIVATIVES
“With my markets and banking responsibilities, I am particularly aware of the risk of dysfunction in key parts of the financial system, including the derivatives market. For example, if UK and EU banks lose their ability to perform regulated activities in each other’s markets, they may not be able to undertake actions which are not unusual in the lifecycle of a derivative, such as the exercise of an option or trade compression.”
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Source: Investing.com
