At its meeting today, the Governing Council of the ECB decided to leave the interest rate on the main refinancing operations and the interest rates on the marginal lending facility and the deposit facility unchanged. Florian Heider, Scientific Director of the Leibniz Institute for Financial Research SAFE, offers his view on this decision:
“The ECB’s recent decision to hold off on further changes to key interest rates in the eurozone is initially a positive signal and has reassured markets. The combination of persistently high interest rates and adverse economic data has recently led the central bank to be criticized for being too hesitant. The proclaimed fight against inflation is ongoing, especially as it will be interesting to see how the banks in the eurozone will organize their lending. The ECB now must be careful not to miss the boat, i.e., to pick the right moment to change the direction of its interest rate policy – because the markets and the banks will also interpret this signal.”
Scientific Contact
Prof. Dr. Florian Heider
Scientific Director
