MNI BRIEF: BOE Pill: Rate Cut 'When Rather Than If'

MNI (LONDON) - Bank of England Chief Economist Huw Pill said Wednesday the question for policymakers was when, not if, a cut in Bank Rate would come, although downplayed the likelihood of any economic data between now and the August meeting resolving the issue.

Pill, a key swing voter with the Monetary Policy Committee split between those backing a hike and those clearly opposed to one, (see: MNI POLICY: BOE's Pill Holds August Rate Cut Trump Card On Split MPC) highlighted the difficulty in separating the signal from the noise in assessing underlying inflation persistence and gave a balanced view on how soon the current restrictive policy stance could be loosened.

As policy can be eased and still left in restrictive territory his remarks do not appear to move the dial decisively for or against an August cut.