Ray Dalio, the billionaire founder of hedge fund firm Bridgewater Associates, warned that the UK could be heading for a “debt death spiral”, in which it has to borrow more and more money to service its rising interest costs.
Dalio told the Financial Times that the recent sell-off in the gilt market, coupled with bouts of sterling weakness, suggested that the market was struggling to absorb the UK’s higher borrowing needs since last October’s Budget.
The combination of rising annual interest payments, which have already topped £100bn a year, and the need to roll over debt at higher borrowing costs, created the risk of a self-reinforcing cycle, he said.