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mpc: 6 Equity markets had risen in the United Kingdom and euro area and were little changed in the United States since the Committee's October meeting. Since the publication of the August Inflation Report, equity markets had risen significantly, with the FTSE All-Share Index up by more than 7%. This was puzzling, especially given the sharp rise in oil prices over this period. The fall in market interest rates would have reduced the rate at which future corporate earnings were discounted in valuing equities. But, if this decline in rates had been a response to weaker economic growth prospects, that change in outlook would normally have implied lower growth in corporate earnings.