Central Bank

ECB’s de Guindos: "The Current Level of Interest Rates Is Appropriate"

By Marta Vilar – PAMPLONA, Spain (Econostream) – European Central Bank Vice President Luis de Guindos said on Friday that current interest rates remain “appropriate,” and cautioned that the disinflationary effects of globalization seen in past years may be fading.

ECB’s Lane: Digital Euro Needed to Safeguard Retail Role of Central Bank Money

By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – European Central Bank Chief Economist Philip Lane has argued that the digital euro was essential to preserving the role of central bank money in retail transactions as the monetary system adapts to digitalisation.

ECB’s Rehn: We Are ‘Ready to Act if Necessary’

By Marta Vilar – MADRID (Econostream) – European Central Bank Governing Council member Olli Rehn said on Thursday that the ECB would be ready to act if needed.

Ex-ECB’s Knot: ‘Central Bank Independence Is Not There for Us, It’s There for You’

By David Barwick – ALPBACH, Austria (Econostream) – Former European Central Bank Governing Council member Klaas Knot on Thursday stressed that central bank independence was crucial to monetary authorities’ relatively successful handling of the recent inflation surge.

BIS’s de Cos: Central Banks Must Be Robust, Flexible and Realistic

By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – Central banks need to adapt to an increasingly uncertain environment by ensuring that their policies are characterised by robustness, flexibility and realism, BIS General Manager Pablo Hernández de Cos said Tuesday.

ECB’s Villeroy: US-EU Trade Agreement ‘Cannot Be Considered Positive’ for Europe

By Marta Vilar – MADRID (Econostream) – European Central Bank Governing Council member François Villeroy de Galhau said on Tuesday that the US-EU trade agreements was negative for Europe and that tariffs were still ‘bad news’.

ECB’s Lagarde: Higher US Tariffs to Have a ‘Small Impact’ on European Growth

By Marta Vilar – MADRID (Econostream) – European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said on Monday that the impact of higher US tariffs on European economic growth would be limited.

ECB’s Kazāks Sees Monetary Policy ‘Still in a Good Place’

By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – European Central Bank Governing Council member Mārtiņš Kazāks on Sunday again endorsed the ECB’s monetary policy pause.

ECB’s Rehn Rejects Cutting Rates Anew Just for ‘Insurance’

By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – European Central Bank Governing Council member Olli Rehn on Saturday dismissed the idea of lowering official euro area interest rates again just for the ‘insurance’ such a cut would provide.

ECB’s Lagarde: Euro Area Labour Market Unusually Resilient Amid Latest Disinflation

By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde on Saturday said that the euro area’s labour market had proved unexpectedly robust in the current disinflationary episode.

ECB’s Nagel: ‘The Bar is High’ for Another Rate Cut

By Marta Vilar – MADRID (Econostream) – European Central Bank Governing Council member Joachim Nagel said on Friday that the bar for another interest rate cut was high.

ECB’s Lagarde: Trade Agreement with US ‘Well Below the Severe Scenario’

By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde on Wednesday said that the trade deal between the US and Europe was much less negative than the severe scenario of the ECB’s last macroeconomic forecasts.

ECB’s Nagel: Interest Rates ‘Currently at a Very Good Level’

By Marta Vilar – MADRID (Econostream) – European Central Bank Governing Council member Joachim Nagel said on Tuesday that interest rates were currently at a ‘very good level’ and that the ECB's next steps would be flexible.

Transcript: Interview with ECB Governing Council member Holzmann on 4 August 2025

By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) - Following is the transcript of an interview on 4 August 2025 with Robert Holzmann, Governor of the Austrian National Bank and member of the Governing Council of the European Central Bank.

Exclusive: ECB’s Holzmann: Most of Us Agreed Monetary Policy Now Needs a Steady Hand

By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – The European Central Bank’s Governing Council for the most part agrees that it is now appropriate for a ‘steady hand’ approach to monetary policy, according to Council member Robert Holzmann.

ECB’s Cipollone: Cash to Remain a Core Payment Option Alongside Digital Euro

By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – Cash will remain a core component of the euro area’s payment system and coexist with the digital euro, European Central Bank Executive Board member Piero Cipollone said Monday.

ECB Wrap: Recap of Week From Saturday 26 July to Friday 1 August 2025

ECB Wage Tracker Points to Ongoing Easing of Wage Pressures

By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – The European Central Bank’s wage tracker shows wage pressures in the euro area continuing to ease, the ECB said Wednesday.

ECB Sees US Tariffs on China Driving Down Euro Area Inflation, Blog Suggests

By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – The imposition of tariffs on Chinese imports entering the US could exert mild disinflationary pressure on the euro area by 2026, according to a new European Central Bank blog post published Wednesday analysing trade diversion dynamics and inflation pass-through.

ECB’s Makhlouf: Can Wait and See Whether We Need to Adjust Our Policy Stance

By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – The European Central Bank can now wait to see whether incoming information dictates a further adjustment of its interest rates, ECB Governing Council member Gabriel Makhlouf said Tuesday.