ECB set to raise rates again in May, policymakers say
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Loading... - jamie harper
- 03 Feb 2023
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The European Central Bank is likely to raise interest rates again in May after an already signalled hike in March, two policymakers said on Friday, with one arguing that the peak or "terminal" rate is at least starting to appear on the horizon.
The ECB raised rates by a half a percentage point to 2.5% on Thursday and promised a similar move in March but kept its options open about subsequent steps, raising doubts among investors about its resolve to keep raising rates to tame inflation.
But Slovakia's Peter Kazimir and Lithuania's Gediminas Šimkus said that March would not be the end of policy tightening because inflation was still far too high, even if there had been an improvement recently.
"The March increase will not be the last," Kazimir said in a statement. "We will decide how many more will be needed later."
Simkus said the May increase could be either 25 or 50 basis points but a step up to 75 bps was unlikely. Read More…
