The Bank of England’s fresh attempt to soothe market chaos followed another punishing day for the pound and UK government bonds amid worries over the Government’s mini-budget plans (Victoria Jones/PA)
(Picture: PA Archive)As commuters headed for morning trains, the Bank of England made a bombshell announcement - it’s stepping in again to try and restore market conditions following the chaos after the Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng’s mini-Budget.
The Bank announced at 7am it would expand buying emergency gilts, amid “material risk” warnings to the UK economy’s stability caused by “dysfunction” from the mini-Budget fallout.
Bank chiefs say the institution would buy up to £5 billion of index-linked debt, known as ‘linkers’, alongside its previously announced purchase of up to £65 billion worth of conventional long-dated government bonds.
It comes after the Bank’s first emergency intervention when the mini-Budget sparked a tumble in the pound - leading to fears some pension funds could collapse.
All this follows wage figures showing a gulf between earnings and inflation, and shoppers face paying £643 more a year for food.
So what’s on Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey’s mind, how safe are pension funds and why are we still not being told what the Office for Budget Responsibility thinks?
Deputy Prime Minister Thérèse Coffey responded to the move that she was “confident” that people’s pensions are safe.
To find out what all this means for the pound in your pocket and the winter ahead, we’re joined by Dr Grace Lordan, a labour economist at the London School of Economics.
We discuss gilts, personal finance, government stalling and hopes for Kwarteng’s forthcoming Halloween budget.
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