The sterling exchange rate was unusually stable in the two years following its departure from the ERM in September 1992. In effective terms it fluctuated within a fairly narrow range around an average of about 89 on the new effective exchange rate index and this was approximately the level at which it ended 1994. Since then it has depreciated by over 5 per cent and at the time of writing (11 May) there is some uncertainty as to whether it will fall further. This largely unexpected depreciation is of sufficient size to influence the development of the UK economy and in particular to increase the amount of inflationary pressure at a time when there are doubts about whether monetary policy has been tightened enough to deal with that which already exists.