Wednesday, 18 July 2012 11:01
Seven MPC members in favour of latest £50bn round of quantitative easing
The latest £50bn round of quantitative easing will take four months to complete and was supported by seven members of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee.
The newest round brought the total amount of QE to £375bn, although the Committee had debated adding £75bn to boost the total to £400bn.
Minutes from the meeting, held on 4-5 June stated: "On balance, and in light of potential stimulus provided by other recent and prospective policy initiatives, these members judged that an additional £50bn of asset purchases was appropriate at this meeting in order to balance the risks of inflation around the two per cent target in the medium term."
The only two members to vote against the proposals were Spencer Dale and Ben Broadbent who preferred to hold the QE level at £325bn. This was because they felt policy initiatives would have a greater effect on economic activity than more stimulus.
Regarding inflation, the Committee said it had fallen faster than they expected, primarily due to the reduction in oil prices, and would fall modestly during the rest of the year. Inflation currently stands at 2.4 per cent, just 0.4 per cent above the Bank's two per cent target.
The newest round brought the total amount of QE to £375bn, although the Committee had debated adding £75bn to boost the total to £400bn.
Minutes from the meeting, held on 4-5 June stated: "On balance, and in light of potential stimulus provided by other recent and prospective policy initiatives, these members judged that an additional £50bn of asset purchases was appropriate at this meeting in order to balance the risks of inflation around the two per cent target in the medium term."
The only two members to vote against the proposals were Spencer Dale and Ben Broadbent who preferred to hold the QE level at £325bn. This was because they felt policy initiatives would have a greater effect on economic activity than more stimulus.
The Committee agreed unanimously for the base rate to remain at 0.5 per cent. However, it stated that at its June meeting it had considered moving the base rate below 0.5 per cent but decided the effectiveness of this may be affected by the new Funding for Lending Scheme.
The new scheme, announced last week, aims to make £80bn available in cheap credit for banks to lend to families and small businesses.Regarding inflation, the Committee said it had fallen faster than they expected, primarily due to the reduction in oil prices, and would fall modestly during the rest of the year. Inflation currently stands at 2.4 per cent, just 0.4 per cent above the Bank's two per cent target.
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