BoE stuck in interest rate cul-de-sac – AJ Bell press comment

Kevin Doran
21 March 2019

The Bank of England has today decided to hold UK interest rates at 0.75% - https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/monetary-policy-summary-and-minutes/2019/march-2019

Kevin Doran, chief investment officer at AJ Bell, comments:

“Coming hard on the heels of a dovish Fed announcement, it’s no surprise to see Carney & Co sit on their hands today.  Ten years on from the introduction of QE and ultra-low interest rates, it’s clear that the ‘emergency’ path we took back then has proven to be more a cul-de-sac with no escape.  In the meantime, cautious savers – the folk with no culpability for the crisis – continue to be punished with punitive rates of return way below the rate of inflation.  

“Over the decade, a UK bank account will have given savers a 5% return, during which time the cost of living has increased by 34%.  These savers will be hoping that the Bank can find reverse gear sometime soon, but today’s announcement will provide them with little hope.”

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