The governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, hinted at a possible interest rate rise later this year during a keynote speech.
Speaking at the annual Mansion House dinner in London, Carney said that a rise “could happen sooner than markets currently expect”, but did not offer a specific roadmap.
He commented that the decision to raise rates from the current record low of 0.5% was becoming more “balanced”, but noted that there was still spare capacity in the economy that would need to be utilized first.
He also made it clear that it was the gradual pace of change after the initial rate hike was more important than the date the process begins.
