Guy Stephens: Are rising consumer debt levels a concern?

Money is cheap - so is it really a surprise the Bank of England voiced its concerns last week over rising consumer debt levels in the UK? Well, actually it is. Against a backdrop of falling wages, low interest rates, rising inflation, rising house prices, the fall of sterling and quantitative easing - the latter, somewhat ironically, being part of the Bank of England's current monetary policy to encourage spending - UK consumer debt is at a record high. We find the Bank of England's current concern surrounding rising consumer debt levels somewhat contradictory - on the one hand, it is...