MNI BRIEF: BOE Bailey Says Further Hikes Not Inevitable

Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey pushed back against the view that the choice facing the Monetary Policy Committee at its March meeting was over the size of the next hike, saying instead that nothing had been decided and that neither further hikes nor a rate pause were inevitable.

Bailey said that the economic data since the February hike had come in largely as expected with inflation a touch weaker and wage growth slightly stronger. In February the MPC collectively removed its commitment to taking "forceful" action if required and left the question hanging whether Bank Rate would need to rise further than 4.0%.

The BOE Governor's speech at the Brunswick Group left the question of what happens next open, with Bailey saying "At this stage, I would caution against suggesting either that we are done with increasing Bank Rate, or that we will inevitably need to do more. Some further increase in Bank Rate may turn out to be appropriate, but nothing is decided." T.