Stock markets are too high and set to fall, says Bank of England deputy

bank of england deputy governor sarah breeden told the bbc that global stock markets are too high and expected to fall. she said asset prices are at all-time highs despite "a lot of risk out there," and that the bank expects "an adjustment at some point." breeden, who heads financial stability at the bank, pointed to several risks markets seem complacent about: a major macroeconomic shock, a private credit crunch, and overvalued ai stocks. she said what keeps her up at night is the chance of multiple risks hitting at once. private credit has grown from nothing to $2.5 trillion in 15-20 years and hasn't been tested at that scale, she noted. the us stock market has hit repeated records despite warnings from the international energy agency about the biggest energy shock in history. technology firms have poured hundreds of billions into ai infrastructure — bill gates called it "a frenzy" resembling the late-1990s dotcom bubble. breeden declined to say when or how much markets might fall, saying her job is ensuring the system is resilient if they do.