Gerrard warns of faster interest rate hikes

The threat of a hike greater than 0.25% comes after the Office for National Statistics published numbers showing UK GDP grew 0.9% in the second quarter, taking year-on-year growth to 3.7%. That is the highest rate of GDP growth since the third quarter of 2000, and, coming after the Bank warned in minutes from the last meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee that “there is little spare capacity in the economy”, it looks as if the MPC’s ‘gradualist’ approach may have to be abandoned, Rubinsohn says. ” Indeed, the risk is now growing that the Bank will be forced to abandon its gradualis...