LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Liz Truss defended her economic plan Thursday and said she’s willing to make “difficult decisions” to get the economy growing.
In her first public comments since her government’s announcement of billions in uncosted tax cuts roiled markets and drove the pound to record lows, Truss said Britain was facing a “very, very difficult” economic situation. But she said the problems were global and spurred by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
She spoke after the Bank of England took emergency action Wednesday to stabilize U.K. financial markets and head off a crisis in the broader economy after the government spooked investors with a program of unfunded tax cuts, sending the pound tumbling and the cost of government debt soaring.
Truss told BBC local radio that “we had to take urgent action to get our economy growing, get Britain moving and also deal with inflation.”
The yield on the 10-year U.K. gilt
TMBMKGB-10Y,
rose 15 basis points to 4.17%, a day after emergency Bank of England action to stabilize the bond market. The 10-year yield was just 3.10% when she entered office. Yields run in the opposite direction to prices.
The pound
GBPUSD,
fell to $1.0775 from $1.0891 on Wednesday. The U.K. currency was trading above $1.15 before Truss formed a government.
— MarketWatch contributed to this report.
