BoE policymaker Jonathan Haskel said in a speech that “current stand of monetary policy is appropriate”. But, “on balance risks are to the downside”. He added that a second wave of coronavirus pandemic would be a “statement about public health”. BoE’s job would be to “respond to the prospective economic consequences”, depending on factors including fiscal reactions and other countries situations.
He also noted “worryingly the indicators of rising unemployment are already revealing themselves with unemployment claims recorded to date enough to put us back to levels of unemployment not seen since the financial crisis. Furthermore there remains a great deal of uncertainty as to how many of the currently furloughed workers will be able to return to their jobs, which in large part will depend on our success as a nation managing and suppressing the virus, and the state of household finances and consumers’ appetite for resumption of discretionary economic activity.
