By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – The European Central Bank does not need to feel obliged by markets on Thursday into explicitly validating June rate hike expectations, let alone a 50bp move. But after the latest inflation expectations data and Tuesday’s market reaction, a dovish tone from ECB President Christine Lagarde would fit the moment poorly, even if sounding overly hawkish would also carry risks.
By Marta Vilar – WASHINGTON (Econostream) – Following is the full transcript of the interview conducted by Econostream on 15 April 2026 and updated on 17 April 2026 with Joachim Nagel, President of the Deutsche Bundesbank and member of the Governing Council of the European Central Bank:
By Marta Vilar – WASHINGTON (Econostream) – The European Central Bank does not necessarily have to deliver on financial market expectations of ECB interest rate moves, according to Governing Council member Joachim Nagel.
By Marta Vilar and David Barwick – WASHINGTON (Econostream) - Following is the full transcript of the interview conducted by Econostream on 16 April with Alexander Demarco, Governor of the Central Bank of Malta and member of the Governing Council of the European Central Bank:
By David Barwick and Marta Vilar – WASHINGTON (Econostream) – June, rather than the April 30 policy meeting, would be the more appropriate point for the European Central Bank to judge whether the war-driven energy shock is feeding through into broader inflation, according to ECB Governing Council member Alexander Demarco.
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – The European Central Bank does not need to feel obliged by markets on Thursday into explicitly validating June rate hike expectations, let alone a 50bp move. But after the latest inflation expectations data and Tuesday’s market reaction, a dovish tone from ECB President Christine Lagarde would fit the moment poorly, even if sounding overly hawkish would also carry risks.
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – Over the last month, the European Central Bank has laid the groundwork for a hold at this week’s Governing Council monetary policy meeting. If the three key last-minute data points—namely euro area GDP and inflation as well as the ECB’s corporate telephone survey—do not deliver a major surprise, then a unanimous hold on Thursday still looks like the most likely outcome.
By Marta Vilar – MADRID (Econostream) – The European Central Bank lagged markets in turning hawkish after the Middle East conflict began and is already retreating from that stance, even as investors continue to price in two rate hikes for 2026, having only recently dropped expectations of an April move. This shift is clearly reflected in Econostream’s ECB Tone Meter and we explain it in this piece.
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – The European Central Bank’s latest Consumer Expectations Survey makes a hold by the Governing Council on Thursday a harder sell, but does not make a rate hike unavoidable.
By Marta Vilar – MADRID (Econostream) – Following is the full transcript of the interview conducted by Econostream on 20 March 2026 with Petra Wehlert, Head of Capital Markets of KfW.
By Marta Vilar – MADRID (Econostream) – German investment and development bank KfW is likely to issue another euro green bond in Q2 2026, according to KfW’s Head of Capital Markets, Petra Wehlert.
By Marta Vilar – MADRID (Econostream) – Following is the full transcript of the interview conducted by Econostream on 13 March 2026 with Adrián Martínez, Vice Director of the Swiss Federal Finance Administration.
By Marta Vilar – MADRID (Econostream) – A new Swiss confederation bond is expected later in 2026 and could be issued around the 2041 maturity, which represents the next gap in Switzerland’s bond profile, according to Adrián Martínez, Vice Director of the Swiss Federal Finance Administration (FFA).
By Marta Vilar – MADRID (Econostream) – Econostream’s ECB Tone Meter continued to decline this week, building on last week’s reversal from earlier hawkish levels. The Governing Council index has now slipped back into neutral territory, sitting just below the threshold that would signal a slightly hawkish stance.
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – The European Central Bank does not need to feel obliged by markets on Thursday into explicitly validating June rate hike expectations, let alone a 50bp move. But after the latest inflation expectations data and Tuesday’s market reaction, a dovish tone from ECB President Christine Lagarde would fit the moment poorly, even if sounding overly hawkish would also carry risks.
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – Over the last month, the European Central Bank has laid the groundwork for a hold at this week’s Governing Council monetary policy meeting. If the three key last-minute data points—namely euro area GDP and inflation as well as the ECB’s corporate telephone survey—do not deliver a major surprise, then a unanimous hold on Thursday still looks like the most likely outcome.
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – The European Central Bank’s latest Consumer Expectations Survey makes a hold by the Governing Council on Thursday a harder sell, but does not make a rate hike unavoidable.
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – The European Central Bank’s latest SAFE survey, just released, does not compel a rate hike on Thursday but does make a relaxed hold harder to justify.
