Why the MPC should ramp up QE to stop inflation falling

The absence of any relationship between the monetary base and inflation means no one has any real idea of where the economy is heading. So how can the authorities control inflation and sustain above trend growth? John Clarke, chief investment officer at GHC Capital Markets, explains.

Not so very long ago, we were told by numerous wise economists – albeit mostly those from a naïve Keynesian background – that central banks’ dalliance with quantitative easing from 2009 onwards was guaranteed to result in accelerating (and potentially hyper) inflation. Indeed, some went even further, likening their asset purchase programmes to the ‘money printing’ activities usually reserved for banana republics. However, today, some five years after the Federal Reserve first embarked upon its great monetary experiment, US core inflation is down to just 1.1% and falling. In the UK, th...