Fall in confidence not enough to rule out aggressive rate hikes

Signs that business confidence has started to ease may provide the Monetary Policy Committee with some reassurance that firms' pricing power will soon soften. But the danger that bigger increases in wages will further add to businesses' costs, forcing them to raise their prices by even more, suggests that the Bank may need stronger proof that pricing power is waning before ruling out the need for more aggressive rate rises. We expect interest rates to rise from 1.25% to 3.00%. And for as long as evidence of increased pricing power exists, the risk of even higher rates will linger.