British Business Lobby Cautions Against Hasty BOE Rate Increase
- It’s ‘extraordinary’ that the bank is considering hike: BCC
- Policy makers may move to raise rates as soon as next month
A man looks at his smartphone as he walks past the Bank of England (BOE) in the City of London, U.K., on Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2016. BOE officials announce their next interest rate decision on Thursday, when they are forecast to keep policy unchanged as they assess the outlook for the economy since the Brexit vote.
Photographer: Luke MacGregor/BloombergU.K. business isn’t buying into the idea that the nation needs higher interest rates.
The British Chambers of Commerce said Friday that it’s worried about a hit to sentiment from a Bank of England rate hike at a time of already sluggish economic expansion and Brexit uncertainty. The comments come as the lobby group presented its Quarterly Economic Survey, in which it suggested that improvements in U.K. manufacturing are failing to boost growth from its currently muted level.