Central Banks
ECB Interest Rates Held as Weaker Inflation Raises Prospect of Cuts
- Deposit rate kept at 4%, as expected by all analysts in poll
- New projections show weaker price growth, economic expansion
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The European Central Bank left interest rates unchanged for a fourth meeting as a softer outlook for inflation and economic growth bolstered expectations for cuts starting in June.
The deposit rate was kept at a record 4% — as all economists surveyed by Bloomberg predicted. The Governing Council reiterated that maintaining this level of borrowing costs for “sufficiently long” will make a “substantial contribution” to returning consumer-price growth to the 2% goal.