Myopia in the Bank of England over companies’ profiteering | Letter
The myopic Andrew Bailey is being disingenuous to say the least when stating that “he had no evidence to support” the claim that companies are profiteering during this time of inflation (Bank of England boss urges firms to hold back price rises or risk higher rates, 24 March).
What does he want? A signed confession from the CEOs of the 350 firms listed on the London Stock Exchange whose average profit margins have risen from “5.7% in the first half of 2019 to 10.7% in the first half of 2022”, admitting that they increased their prices “stealthily and excessively to enrich shareholders at the expense of consumers” (Greedflation: are large firms using crises as cover to push up their profits?, 24 March)? Presumably Procter & Gamble’s 17% profit margin for the last three years has not been noticed by Bailey, nor indeed the results of the research done by Unite, nor the American research showing that most price increases were coming from “companies seeking to maintain profit margins”, which the Guardian first reported three months ago (Bank of England poised to raise borrowing costs to combat inflation, 14 December 2022).
Bailey would not know, however, of the home insurance quote I was sent this month that was approximately 200% higher than the amount I paid to the same company last year, despite no claims. When I rang for an explanation, I was told it was because of my postcode – the same, obviously, as last year.
Bernie Evans
Liverpool
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