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Resource Center » U.S. & International Recaps | Release Dates | Why Investors Care | Today's Calendar
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ECB Announcement
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Definition
The European Central Bank Governing Council consists of 18 members. The Committee meets twice a month. The first monthly meeting of the month is devoted to monetary policy. Changes in monetary policy if any are announced immediately after the meetings. A press conference is held about 45 minutes after the meeting ends. A statement is read concerning their action -- or lack of it -- followed by a question and answer period. The ECB does not publish any minutes for its meetings. Why Investors Care
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| Released on
4/10/08
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Change
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Highlights
As anticipated, the European Central Bank governing council once again left its key interest rate at 4 percent. ECB president Jean Claude Trichet remains unswervingly committed to fighting inflation, in spite of expectations that eurozone growth will slow along with the rest of the global economy. This presents a dilemma for the Bank. The flash estimate of the harmonized index of consumer prices showed that the annual rate of eurozone inflation had climbed to 3.5 percent in March - the highest level since the data series started in 1997 and the seventh successive month that inflation has come in above the ECB's 2 percent price stability target. A major concern is the risk of second-round inflation effects - particularly given that the eurozone unemployment rate is at a record low of 7.1 percent. The ECB has stated that monetary policy issues are separate and apart from credit and liquidity problems facing the financial sector and will deal with them separately. Analysts will listen with interest to Mr Trichet's comments at his press conference later this morning.
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Trends
![[Chart]](chart.gif)
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The ECB monitors two "pillars" of monetary policy - the harmonized index of consumer prices (HICP) and M3 money supply - in its objective to control inflation. The ceiling for HICP growth is 2 percent. M3 growth is targeted at a 4.5 percent reference growth rate. In July, flash HICP soared by 4.1 percent after rising by 4.0 percent in June. Money supply growth has eased from its peak of 12 percent in October and November of 2007 but still expanded at a rate of 9.9 percent for the three months ending in June when compared with the same three months a year earlier. |
Data Source: Haver Analytics | Consensus Data Source: Market News International and Thomson Financial
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