020 7898 0500Last week we saw the outlook on UK interest rates become more hazy as Bank of England Governor Mark Carney and its Chief Economist Andy Haldane had a difference of opinion.
While Carney was quite firm in his insistence that the time was not right for a rate hike, Haldane contradicted him the day after, suggesting that leaving a raise too late could lead to steeper rises down the line.
The markets are now trying to predict what the other members of the Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee make of this. As it stands, the markets are pricing in a 46% chance of a rate rise by the end of the year.
As we enter the final week of the first half of the year, we have a fairly quiet economic data week. Much of the attention will continue to remain on the political situation as no announcement of how the deal between the DUP and Conservatives will work and at what cost has been made. Any further comment surrounding Brexit could also cause a stir. In terms of economic data, we have the net lending numbers, the current account and the final reading of the first quarter (Q1) Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
