Don’t take the Bank of England’s optimistic economic forecasts at face value

Wade into the detail of the new report from Threadneedle Street and a less encouraging picture emerges, says Ben Chu

For all the economic brainpower upon which its analysts can draw, the bank does not – and cannot – know what the path of the pandemic will be in the UK (Reuters)

A smaller recession than first expected. Lower peak unemployment. What’s not to like about the Bank of England’s latest projections for the coronavirus-ravaged UK economy?

On the face of it the new Monetary Policy Report from the bank, released on Thursday, is indeed a refreshing gust of economic optimism at a time when many others are prophesying something akin to economic doom.

Yet wade into the detail of the new report from Threadneedle Street and a less encouraging picture emerges.