Bank of Greece (BoG) Gov. Yannis Stournaras on Friday again left open the possibility of yet another interest rate hike in September by the European Central Bank, while adding however, that any such development beyond that specific month would be “surprising”.
According to Reuters, “…Stournaras, who is considered a dove on the ECB’s 26-member Governing Council, said that any ECB move in September would be determined by data, and that the inflation outlook and the transmission of monetary policy would be the main factors to watch.
“In July more or less we will have a 0.25 basis point (hike) but in September I’m agnostic, may be, maybe not,” he told reporters in Athens when asked over the issue.
“But I would not see more hikes beyond September as the economy develops now in Europe,” he added. “I would be surprised if we have more hikes beyond September”
Reuters reminded that the European Central Bank has raised interest rates at every meeting over the past year, while promised another hike this month. The Eurozone’s central banks said it cannot stop tightening policy until a marked turnaround in the outlook for underlying prices, sans “volatile” food and energy costs.
