Bank of England governor Mark Carney has been described as an unreliable boyfriend in the past, primarily because of his lack of clarity over possible interest rate rise timings. However, it’s worth saying that he has also been described as ‘the outstanding central banker of his generation’, so it’s peaks and troughs. As Carney approaches the end of his tenure as governor, there are calls for him to stick around for longer than June 2019 – when he is set to leave.
Carney has previously said he will return to Canada for family reasons when he steps down, but on Monday, there were reports that the Treasury and Bank of England are in discussions with him to extend his stay. At around lunchtime yesterday, Carney spoke to Parliament’s Treasury committee and was asked by Nicky Morgan whether he could shed any light on whether he’d stay longer at the Bank. Carney replied that at this ‘critical period’ it is ‘important that everyone does everything they can to help with the transition of exiting the European Union’.
He also added that he had spoken with Chancellor Philip Hammond and he expected an announcement to be made in due course. We try not to go in for speculation where possible, but it does look as if Carney will extend his stay. The Bank went on to warn of price rises if there is a no-deal Brexit, with Andy Haldane saying this could be the case for several years. Perhaps surprisingly, the pound barely moved following the meeting, though the markets could be waiting for an official announcement to be made.
This uncertainty is why currency risk management is so important. A sudden change in the exchange rate could lead you to lose significant sums of money. Contact your Personal Trader today on 020 7898 0541 to safeguard your budget from risk, such as by using a forward contract to lock in the exchange rate. That way, you’ll know exactly how much you’re paying.
