The Governing Council today decided to lower the three key ECB interest rates by 25 basis points. In particular, the decision to lower the deposit facility rate – the rate through which the Governing Council steers the monetary policy stance – is based on its updated assessment of the inflation outlook, the dynamics of underlying inflation and the strength of monetary policy transmission. Inflation is currently at around the Governing Council’s 2% medium-term target. In the baseline of the new Eurosystem staff projections, headline inflation is set to average 2.0% in 2025, 1.6% in 2026 and 2.0% in 2027. The downward ... (full story)

The European Central Bank cut interest rates for the eighth time in a year on Thursday, acknowledging inflation was under control and turning more pessimistic about the euro zone's economic prospects amid risks of a trade war with the United States. Thursday's cut lowers the rate that the ECB pays on bank deposits from 2.25% to 2.0%, the middle of the range that the central bank sees as "neutral" - neither curbing nor boosting the economy. The ECB kept all options open for its subsequent meetings, although some policymakers and many investors expect a pause in rate cuts at its next meeting in July. ... (full story)