CNBC Excerpts: U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond Speaks with CNBC’s Wilfred Frost on “Squawk on the Street” Today
Following are excerpts from the unofficial transcript of a CNBC interview with Philip Hammond, U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer, on CNBC's "Squawk on the Street" (M-F, 9AM-11AM ET) today, Thursday, October 6th. Following is a link to the video on CNBC.com: http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000557169,
All references must be sourced to CNBC.
HAMMOND ON ECONOMY
Our economy is fundamentally strong, but we are now going into a period of uncertainty because of the Brexit vote. Our growth figures, our employment figures for the first half of this year have been revised upwards. We're probably going to be the highest growing G7 economy this year. But next year, will be a slightly more turbulent period. We don't target any exchange rate. The markets will set the exchange rate that's right for the economy. But we are confident that once people look at the fundamentals and look at the process, things will settle down.
HAMMOND ON QUANTITATIVE EASING
We will look at any case put to us by The Bank of England in the circumstances. And I approved a round of quantitative easing back at the beginning of August as a response to the shock that the economy had felt. But we are conscious of the impacts that quantitative easing has and we will use it carefully and cautiously.
HAMMOND ON GLOBAL FINANCIAL CENTERS
We very much think it works best for the world to have two global financial centers in London and New York. We think that it's in Europe's interests that London continues to be a global financial center. And we'll obviously work with our European Union partners as we negotiate our new arrangements with them to make sure that London continues to serve the whole of Europe as a global financial center.
HAMMOND ON GLOBALIZATION
A lot of people feel disconnected from that process. They feel its passed them by. Globalization is hurting them, not helping them. And we have to reconnect with those people. We have to persuade those people anew that our liberal market economics, our capitalist system, really does deliver for everybody. Because we're not going to be able to sustain support for the system if so many people feel excluded from it.
HAMMOND ON TRUMP BREXIT
I think it's that what Donald Trump calls the middle class – disenfranchised middle class – we would describe them differently in Britain. But it's the same group of people. People who used to expect to earn good money from doing good, solid but relatively low-skilled jobs, who now find that they are displaced perhaps by either imports as a result of globalization, or by migrant workers coming from eastern Europe and working for very low wages.
HAMMOND ON CAPITALISM
Capitalism is clearly the system that delivers a rising standard of living for people across the globe. And it's doing that job. But we have to make sure we spread the fruits of capitalist success in a way that is sensible and fair. And I think there is a sense that over the last few years, the benefits have become too concentrated among a small elite. Not spread widely enough across the economy. And that's what we intend to correct.
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