Even the Office for National Statistics was bored by this month's inflation data. They put this Tweet out this morning:
So, a tiny increase in inflation occurred because last year, energy prices fell by more than they did this year.
And that's it. Prices of these commodities fell this year, but because they are so significant and the fall last year was so big, by a statistical quirk the index has gone up very slightly. It will be going down again, pretty soon.
My suggestion is that we stop obsessing about this. Inflation is on target. Wage increases are falling. The Bank of England should be massively cutting interest rates. But the last of those three things is not happening, and there is a refusal to talk about it. That is the story.
Journalists' questions should be, "Why is the Bank not responding to the good data on inflation?" There is nothing else to ask. But I bet that they will instead obsess about the Bank's supposed caution, which is harming the well-being of UK households.
Why, oh why, can't they see the big issues?
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Interesting Guardian article here
https://www.theguardian.com/business/article/2024/aug/14/revealed-how-uks-poor-paid-price-of-cheapflation-in-cost-of-living-crisis
Not that raising interest rates helped the situation in any way.
Possibly controls on speculation might have
We are also about to go through the annual, Whitehall GERS farce. Wake me up when the pointless exercise in designed bad housekeeping is all over.
I will be in The National later on discusing this
But as I am heading to london immediately after doing so I will not be commenting here until later, if at all
The ownership of the media mitigates against journalists too close a look at economic and monetary matters.
Thank you and well said.
I would add the pay structure and who gets good gigs and who gets zero hours contracts.
“Why, oh why, can’t they see the big issues?”
Lack of political control. Compare & contrast:
https://www.reuters.com/world/china/china-vows-financial-support-restore-agricultural-output-after-floods-2024-08-13
Extract “China’s central bank said on Tuesday it will provide an additional 100 billion yuan ($14 billion) to banks to support rebuilding areas devastated by floods, after recent extreme weather damaged around 6 million acres of crops.”
One can imagine the conversation: telephone “brrring brrrring” : yes Chinese central bank here, , … hello politburo here, please print 100 billion yuan – today, – Central bank: yes comrade.
Yep! But: control or will? In principle the treasury can do the same thing if the government so instructs.
Do ONS mean risen by 2.2% or risen to 2.2%?
To