### Instruction: Extract causal economic narratives from the input text below! A causal economic narrative feautres two events that are causally linked in the sense that event A causes event B. The causal connection must be clear from the given context. State all causal economic narratives from the input text strictly in the following form: 'event A - causes - event B'.
### Input: In the wake of the Bank's first cut in borrowing costs in more than two years yesterday, investors believe several more cuts are in prospect as the economy weakens throughout 2008. NAME_1 warned yesterday that the impact of the global credit crunch, which has already led to the near collapse of Northern Rock, was starting to affect growth prospects for the UK by making borrowing harder and more expensive for households and businesses. Signalling that 2008 will be the toughest year for the economy since Labour came to power in 1997, the Bank said: "Conditions in financial markets have deteriorated and a tightening in the supply of credit to households and businesses is in train, posing downside risks to the outlook for both output and inflation further ahead. " NAME_2 last night made it clear that the Conservatives would make the economy a key political battleground over the next two years when he said in Cardiff: "NAME_3 enjoyed a decade as chancellor living off the expansion of the global economy. But he failed to prepare Britain f Write your response with exactly 2 paragraphs, separated with the markdown divider: ***.
user