Rate hike case ‘getting more balanced’

Bank of England governor, Mark Carney said the judgment on when to increase the benchmark rate from a record low has become "more balanced" in recent months.

The UK is poised for the fastest growth in the G7 this year and BoE policy makers are weighing when to begin removing emergency stimulus measures. While some members of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) have started to push for a rate increase, the governor has voted with the majority, citing weak wages and anaemic growth in Europe as reasons to keep borrowing at 0.5%.

“With many of the conditions for the economy to normalise now met, the point at which interest rates also begin to normalise is getting closer,” Mr Carney said in a speech yesterday in Newport, Wales. “While there is always uncertainty about the future, you can expect interest rates to begin to increase.”