Prices in the United Kingdom continue to rise, hitting another 40-year high of 10.1%. According to figures from the U.K’s Office for National Statistics, the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) rose by 10.1% in the 12 months to September 2022, up from 9.9% in August. The 10.1% figure mirrors July’s recent high. The Bank of England is 8% off the inflation target, while interest rates are 2.25%. Source: Bankofengland.co.uk According to ONS data, “Rising food prices made the largest upward contribution to the change in both the CPIH and CPI annual inflation rates between August and September 2022.” The BBC reported that the Ukraine war led to an increase in grain prices, also sharing that dairy products have risen by over 30% in cost in one year. But what do incessant price rises mean for the British...
The Bank of England announced Friday that it had reached an agreement with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Media Lab Digital Currency Initiative, or DCI, on a joint twelve-month research project on Central Bank Digital Currency, or CBDC. The bank said in a statement that the new project was for research purposes only, and not intended to develop an operational CBDC. The bank began studying CBDC in 2020, releasing a discussion paper in March of that year, which the DCI responded to with a discussion of how a CBDC could meet the objectives stated in the paper. The bank and the treasury headed up an exploratory task force on the matter last April. The bank’s latest discussion paper on CBDC was released Thursday. Other voices have entered the discussion as well, with the House of Lor...