By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – When the European Central Bank’s Governing Council emerged from its June meeting, members’ unspoken “baseline,” we understand, was that there would be no second hike in July but that September would be very live.
21 July 2026
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – European Central Bank Governing Council member Joachim Nagel on Tuesday urged Europe to move faster on the Savings and Investment Union and the digital euro, saying both were needed for a more sovereign and competitive Europe.
21 July 2026
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – Spain’s government has chosen Bank for International Settlements General Manager Pablo Hernández de Cos as its preferred candidate to succeed Christine Lagarde as European Central Bank president, Expansión reported Tuesday.
21 July 2026
- Most respondents still see the ECB rate cycle as active
- September staff projections viewed as the key reason to wait
- Terminal rate most commonly seen at 2.50%
- Risks skewed towards an even higher terminal rate
- July statement and tone seen little changed
- Economists split on how strongly Lagarde will hint at September
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – European Central Bank Governing Council member José Luis Escrivá has attracted little attention in the still unofficial race to succeed ECB President Christine Lagarde. But Escrivá may be hiding in plain sight at the head of the Banco de España, given his strong claim to serious consideration.
20 July 2026
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – The European Central Bank’s latest SAFE survey suggests that euro area firms are not further amplifying the energy shock via their own pricing and wage plans, even as they remain skeptical that inflation will return fully to target over the longer term.
20 July 2026
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – Euro area firms reported a marked further tightening in bank lending conditions in the second quarter, while their expectations for selling prices, input costs and wages moderated, the European Central Bank said Monday.
20 July 2026
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde’s newly explicit openness to leaving Frankfurt early should not be understood exclusively in terms of a potential candidacy in next year’s critical French presidential election.
20 July 2026
By Marta Vilar – MADRID (Econostream) – Econostream’s ECB Tone Meter edged lower this week in both its Governing Council and Executive Board measures, with the latter declining to almost the same level as the former, virtually eliminating the gap that had previously separated the two.
17 July 2026
By Marta Vilar – MADRID (Econostream) – Following is a collection of views expressed by ECB Governing Council members on various topics of high relevance related to next week’s meeting and the further evolution of monetary policy.
17 July 2026
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – European Central Bank Executive Board member Piero Cipollone said Friday that the digital euro would help preserve commercial banks’ role in the payments ecosystem while strengthening Europe’s payments sovereignty.
17 July 2026
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – European Central Bank Governing Council member Joachim Nagel said on Wednesday that Europe should seek to strengthen the international role of the euro, arguing that doing so would increase strategic autonomy in a fragmenting global environment.
15 July 2026
By Laura Contemori – ROME (Econostream) – European Central Bank Governing Council member Fabio Panetta said on Wednesday that the ECB would carefully assess energy markets, the economic outlook and wage and price dynamics when considering its future monetary policy decisions.
15 July 2026
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel’s newest remarks confirm that a July rate hike is not the European Central Bank’s baseline and underscore the need for the ECB to exercise great caution under the prevailing circumstances.
15 July 2026
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – European Central Bank Executive Board member Piero Cipollone said the ECB’s monetary policy was aimed at preventing the current energy shock from generating second-round effects and at keeping inflation expectations anchored.
15 July 2026
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – European Central Bank Governing Council member Joachim Nagel signaled that the ECB need not rush into another rate hike after June’s move, saying the decision had put policy at an appropriate level and that caution was warranted amid high uncertainty.
15 July 2026
By Marta Vilar – MADRID (Econostream) – European Central Bank Governing Council member Emmanuel Moulin said on Wednesday that the impact of renewed tensions in the Middle East on inflation would depend on how persistent and long-lasting the latest crisis proved to be.
15 July 2026
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde is fond of assuring markets that they understand the ECB’s reaction function. After the ECB’s June meeting , for example, she said the Governing Council’s job was to “follow carefully the reaction function that you are all familiar with” and to be “as transparent about [it] as possible so that we are predictable.”
14 July 2026
By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – European Central Bank Governing Council member Yannis Stournaras said Tuesday that renewed hostilities in the Middle East had created fresh uncertainty over inflation and economic growth after energy prices had briefly de-escalated.
14 July 2026