NEW YORK: The British pound fell for the fifth day in a row on Tuesday and was the largest major currency mover after a Bank of England policymaker said that more quantitative easing was probably necessary if the UK’s economic decline worsens.

“Bank rate can be cut further, closer to zero, and quantitative easing can be stepped up,” Ian McCafferty, an external member of the Monetary Policy Committee, wrote in an op-ed piece for the Times.

“The pound is the big story today,” said Marc Chandler, global head of currency strategy at Brown Brothers Harriman in New York. “Everything else is pretty flat within yesterday’s trading ranges.”

The Bank of England last week cut interest rates to next to nothing and unleashed billions of pounds of stimulus to cushion the economic shock from Britain’s vote to leave the European Union.

The pound fell 0.60 percent on Tuesday to $1.2956, its lowest since July 11.

The dollar index against a basket of currencies was little changed at 96.382. The greenback was 0.38 percent weaker against the Japanese yen at 102.03.

The kiwi gained 0.10 percent against the US dollar to $0.7143.—Reuters