The gold bulls are booming against the pound right now in a display of strength that looks set to carry the yellow metal through the weekend. Gold is gaining in the aftermath of remarks made by the Bank of England which warned of a lengthy period of recession.
Governor Andrew Bailey indicated that the Bank of England would follow a similar course of action to the U.S. Federal Reserve and embark on a series of interest rate hikes to cool inflation, despite the economy already facing its most protracted period of recession in more than a century.
The 0.75% rate increase which helped the gold bulls to gains is the largest since 1989 and inflicts further pain on households and businesses. “Inflation is too high, and it’s the bank’s job to bring it down. If we do not act forcefully now it will be worse later on,” Governor Bailey said.
Indicating that there was a tough road ahead and the outlook was very challenging, Bailey warned the bank expects the economy to continue in recession until 2024. He also said that its forecasts suggest inflation will peak at 11% in the current quarter. Much like the Federal Reserve, the Bank of England is targeting a 2% rate of inflation.
With Bailey’s comments seeing the pound lose ground to the dollar, gold prices traded higher with 1% added during the course of trading yesterday (Thursday).