By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – European Central Bank Governing Council member Peter Kažimír on Tuesday said the direction of ECB monetary policy was clear and that the central bank still had work to do, while stressing that the timing of any further action would depend on incoming data.

Kažimír, who heads the National Bank of Slovakia, told media at a press conference that “what we’ll do and exactly when will really depend on the incoming data.”

“But I think the direction is clear and I think we still have work to do,” he said.

The June rate increase had left the ECB well placed to respond if necessary, Kažimír said.

“We have created a very good position with the June rate hike decision to be able to react when it is necessary,” he said.

The fallout from the Middle East conflict would take time to work through, he said.

Recent US-Iran peace-talk developments had not changed his assessment in principle, he said.

Data to come, including June inflation figures, would be critical for determining the ECB’s next steps, he said.

Services prices were key, and the ECB needed to watch for second-round effects as energy-price increases filtered into other areas of inflation, he said.

It would also be important to look for signs of secondary effects that might not yet be visible in the data, he said.