BoE Rate Setters Spark Hike Speculation Amid Energy Price Fears

Two senior Bank of England interest rate-setters suggested they're getting closer to voting for an increase in borrowing costs. Deputy Governors Clare Lombardelli and Sarah Breeden, who both voted to hold the BoE's benchmark rate at 3.75% last week, said they're considering shifting position.

Lombardelli stated that 'the longer higher energy prices persist, the greater the risk that indirect effects build and that inflation expectations, wage bargaining, and price-setting behavior begin to adjust in response.'

Breeden sounded a similar warning: 'The more sparks we're throwing in the tinderbox, the more likely we might have to turn the hose on it.'