Latest articles
A portrait of the UK’s global supply chain exposure
Published 30 September 2024
Global supply chains (GSCs) are an important feature of modern trade. They have brought major benefits, including increased productivity, income, and living standards. But their risks have become more prominent in recent years as major global shocks, coupled with supply chain complexity, have led to disruption, particularly during the pandemic and its aftermath. This is especially relevant for the UK, a small open economy which is highly integrated into global trade systems and hence GSCs.
A portrait of the UK’s global supply chain exposure
The contribution of the Financial Policy Committee to UK financial stability
Published 25 September 2024
As part of the reforms to the UK regulatory framework following the global financial crisis, the Financial Policy Committee (FPC) was formally established as the UK’s macroprudential authority. This article describes the role and powers of the FPC; the processes supporting the Committee; and the key developments during its first decade of existence.
The contribution of the Financial Policy Committee to UK financial stability
Financial stability at the Bank of England
Published 10 September 2024
The financial system makes a vital contribution to the UK economy. It enables households and businesses to make payments, borrow, save and invest, and insure against risks. Financial stability means that the financial system as a whole has sufficient resilience in the face of shocks to ensure the reliable provision of these financial services to households and businesses.
This article explains how the Bank of England works to protect and enhance financial stability in the UK. Given the cost of financial instability and the complexity of the financial system, this work requires a broad set of policies with input from several different bodies inside and outside the Bank of England.
Financial stability at the Bank of England
About a rate of (general) interest: how monetary policy transmits
Published 12 July 2024
Understanding how the monetary policy transmission mechanism operates is essential for policymakers, such as the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), to assess and predict the impact of their policies on the economy – and hence for their ability to deliver on their price stability mandate. This article outlines the Bank of England’s staff view on the impact that conventional monetary policy (ie, changes in the policy rate, or expectations of its future path) is believed to have on key UK variables, which has informed MPC discussions.
About a rate of (general) interest: how monetary policy transmits
Measuring climate-related financial risks using scenario analysis
Published 17 April 2024
Climate change – through both physical impacts and the effects of economies transitioning to net zero – poses financial risks in both the short and long term. These risks are relevant to a wide range of institutions across the financial system. This includes the Bank of England, given its significant financial operations. However, these risks are challenging to quantify, which could limit financial institutions’ abilities to mitigate against these risks into the future. This article explores how central banks and financial institutions can use scenario analysis to quantify these risks. It focuses on how financial institutions can ‘extend’ macro-climate scenarios to undertake granular asset-level analysis of financial risks, drawing on examples across sovereign bonds, corporate bonds and residential mortgages. It also discusses how scenario analysis outputs can be applied to financial institutions’ existing financial modelling toolkits. While scenario analysis applied in this way is at the cutting edge of climate financial risk measurement, it is still subject to a number of limitations.
Measuring climate-related financial risks using scenario analysis
Identifying barriers to productive investment and external finance: a survey of UK SMEs
Published 11 March 2024
This Bulletin documents the findings from a finance and investment decisions survey run by the Bank of England in 2023, in collaboration with the Department for Business and Trade. The survey was completed by 2,885 small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The novelty of the survey is that it links SME’s access to finance and their financing decisions to their investment choices. Furthermore, it also delves into the relatively less explored issue of credit demand that could play a determining role in SME investment decisions.
Identifying barriers to productive investment and external finance: a survey of UK SMEs
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