In my book, this is not only bad for the needed cyclical recovery in aggregate demand. I suspect that it will impede the rebalancing of the economy’s productive capacity. Firms wishing to enter or expand export markets, or compete against importers, often need credit. Finance is the oil that lubricates the allocation – and so, in current circumstances, reallocation – of capital in our economy. This is manifestly affecting SMEs. My hunch is that housing market conditions are a factor too. As long as anyone can remember, a crucial element of SME finance has been the capacity of entrepreneurs to pledge their home at the outset of a loan or, contingently, if and when their business hits choppy waters. Uncertainties about the path of house prices do not make that a comfortable backdrop for lenders in current conditions. 2  BIS central bankers’ speeches  Rebalancing will affect labour market conditions too. Perhaps the greatest surprise to the MPC over the past few years has been subdued productivity growth. One could think of this as firms maintaining employment at higher levels than would have been predicted given the fall in the level of output. Labour hoarding. That squares with business managers explaining that they worry about “structural” skill shortages and so are loathe to lose employees who they will need when their markets recover. But it does not really square with surveys of business conditions reporting that firms say they are carrying relatively little spare capacity. We have scratched our heads about this.
In the meantime, inflation is uncomfortably high, and an absolute precondition for maintaining our support to demand is the credibility of monetary policy. Over the next few quarters, the Committee’s most important judgment call will be put to the test. We will all discover whether inflation declines rapidly from 5% towards 3% as the effects of the price level shocks wane. Finally, let me stress that the gloom should not be overdone. The record is that flexible economies with sound macroeconomic regimes recover from almost any crisis. The UK will recover. Meanwhile the MPC will continue to underpin demand, consistent with getting back to the 2% inflation target and so with sound money. BIS central bankers’ speeches  3