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☆ Here's what 12 European Central Bank members said about interest rates this week
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-19 | by ( Jenni Reid | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

The ECB opted to hold rates steady in April and next meets to vote on monetary policy on June 6. Christine Lagarde, president of the ECBThe ECB's figurehead delivered a firm message that reflected her statements in recent press conferences: markets should expect an interest rate cut soon, barring major surprises. watch nowGabriel Makhlouf, governor of the Central Bank of IrelandMakhlouf said the most recent data sets had shifted his view on rates. "We don't follow the Fed... and now the ECB will be the central bank to be followed," Šimkus said. One could have cut rates way back in March or even April," he continued, adding that he hoped a majority of Governing Council members would back a June cut.

Persons: Kirill Kudryavtsev, Christine Lagarde, Lagarde, CNBC's Sara Eisen, Galhau, Villeroy, Karen Tso, Joachim Nagel, Germany's, Nagel, Robert Holzmann, Mario Centeno, Centeno, Gabriel Makhlouf, Central Bank of Ireland Makhlouf, we've, Makhlouf, Pierre Wunsch, Wunsch, Boris Vujčić, Jerome Powell, Vujčić, Gediminas Šimkus, Bank of Lithuania Šimkus, Šimkus, Edward Scicluna, Central Bank of Malta Scicluna, Kazāks, Bank of Latvia Kazāks, Olli Rehn, Rehn Organizations: Afp, Getty, International, European Central Bank, CNBC, ECB, Bank of France, Council, Austrian Central Bank One, Bank of Portugal, Central Bank of Ireland, National Bank of, Croatian National Bank, Federal, U.S, Bank of Lithuania, Central Bank of, Governing, Bank of Locations: Frankfurt, Germany, New York, ECB's, National Bank of Belgium, U.S, Europe, Central Bank of Malta, Bank of Latvia, Bank of Finland

Oil futures traded steady ahead of next week's OPEC+ meeting, which could bring some kind of agreement on output cuts in 2024. Gold futures finished higher as the dollar index slipped against a basket of currencies on Friday. Germany's 10-year government bond yield , the benchmark for the euro area, rose 3 basis points to a 1-1/2-week high. Oil prices were steady after tumbling more than 1% on concerns over a delayed OPEC+ meeting. ($1 = 7.2111 Chinese yuan renminbi)Reporting by Chris Prentice in New York, Naomi Rovnick in London and Stella Qiu in Sydney.

Persons: Caitlin Ochs, Germany's DAX, Peter Doherty, Arbuthnot Latham, Robert Holzmann, Pierre Wunsch, Chris Prentice, Naomi Rovnick, Stella Qiu, Toby Chopra, Susan Fenton, Mark Potter, Deepa Babington Organizations: New York Stock Exchange, REUTERS, U.S, Dow Jones, Nasdaq, Hamas, P Global, European Central Bank, ECB, Bank of England, Japan's Nikkei, China's CSI, Brent, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, OPEC, Germany, Israel, London, Belgian, Asia, New York, Sydney

☆ Dollar nurses losses as US rates seen peaking
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Tom Westbrook | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The index , which measures the dollar against a basket of six major currencies, fell 1.9% last week alongside a big rally in U.S. The yuan also hit a three-month high on the dollar on Monday as the central bank guided it higher. "The dollar continues to struggle, with the dollar index breaking below 104 on Friday and (now) below 103.5 ... as markets decide that the Fed is done," analysts at ANZ said in a note. The Australian dollar was marginally firmer at $0.6561, just below Monday's three-month high of $0.6564. The New Zealand dollar was steady at $0.6040.

Persons: Pierre Wunsch, Kit Juckes, Christine Lagarde, Tom Westbrook, Jacqueline Wong Organizations: European Central Bank, New Zealand, ANZ, Conference, Federal Reserve, Futures, Generale, U.S, Thomson Locations: SINGAPORE, Asia, U.S, Japan, Tokyo

☆ ECB hawks push back on early rate cut bets
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"It would be unwise to start cutting interest rates too soon," Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel said in a speech. Austria's Robert Holzmann was even more explicit, arguing that the second quarter was simply too soon for a rate cut. Asked if he ruled out an interest rate cut in the second quarter of next year, he said: "That would be a bit early." The ECB held rates unchanged in October, snapping a streak to ten straight rate hikes, fuelling market bets that its record-breaking tightening streak is now over and the next move is a cut. Instead of easing policy, the ECB should tighten further, Wunsch argued, by ending early its bond purchases in the 1.7 trillion euro Pandemic Emergency Purchase Programme.

Persons: Joachim Nagel, Ann Saphir, Robert Holzmann, Holzmann, Pierre Wunsch, Wunsch, Nagel, Balazs Koranyi, Francois Murphy, Kirsten Donovan, Andrew Heavens Organizations: European Central Bank policymaker, Kansas City Fed, REUTERS, European Central Bank, ECB, Thomson Locations: Jackson, Jackson Hole , Wyoming, FRANKFURT, VIENNA, Belgian

☆ ECB policymakers eye springtime push to cut payments on banks' deposits, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-13 | by ( Balazs Koranyi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

MARRAKECH, Oct 13 (Reuters) - European Central Bank policymakers are planning a springtime push to cut interest payments made to commercial banks, in part to recoup some of the costs associated with a decade worth of stimulus, sources familiar with discussions said. That would mean overall interest payments to lenders - which still earn the ECB deposit rate, currently 4%, on other excess cash parked with the central bank - would be reduced further. But the ECB rejected the proposal in July, partly on resistance from its Executive Board, the sources said. The board's key argument is that excess liquidity is distributed unevenly across the euro zone and raising the ratio would put an excessive burden on smaller banks with a larger portion of deposits. Deutsche Bank CEO Christian Sewing argued that the change would add to banks' financial burdens and restrict their lending options.

Persons: Bundesbank, Joachim Nagel, Robert Holzmann, Latvia's Martin Kazaks, Isabel Schnabel, Austria's Holzmann, France's Francois Villeroy de, Pierre Wunsch, We're, Schnabel, Deutsche Bank CEO Christian Sewing, Tom Sims, John Stonestreet Organizations: Central Bank, ECB, Austrian, Barclays, Deutsche Bank CEO Christian, Thomson Locations: MARRAKECH

☆ Oil price shock could spur another rate hike, European Central Bank member says
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( Jenni Reid | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The latest euro zone inflation figures are "comforting" — but oil prices still pose a risk that could push the European Central Bank into another rate hike, Belgium's central bank governor said Thursday. "It is one of the factors that, you know, could push inflation higher ... inflation would be higher in a way that we will not meet our target in [2025], then I think would have to do more," Pierre Wunsch told CNBC's Joumanna Bercetche, referring to a persistent shock in the price of oil. "If inflation would be higher than our forecast, no more than marginally, then I think we have to do more," he also said. When asked whether this marked a change in approach for the ECB, many members of which in 2021 described inflation driven by energy markets as transitory, Wunsch said: "I think it's just our reading of the impact of a succession of shocks has changed." The last 23 years of observing and modeling inflation had led policymakers to believe "sustained inflation was becoming close to impossible," Wunsch said in an interview at the International Monetary Fund's annual meetings in Marrakech, Morocco.

Persons: Pierre Wunsch, CNBC's Joumanna, Wunsch Organizations: European Central Bank, ECB, International Monetary Locations: Marrakech, Morocco

☆ Oil price shock could push ECB into another hike, National Bank of Belgium governor said
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailOil price shock could push ECB into another hike, National Bank of Belgium governor saidPierre Wunsch, governor of the National Bank of Belgium, discusses the latest inflation figures and the trends the ECB is monitoring.

Persons: Pierre Wunsch Organizations: Email, ECB, National Bank of, National Bank of Belgium Locations: National Bank of Belgium

☆ Global central banks unite in "higher for longer" credo
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-21 | by ( Mark John | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

The so-called "higher for longer" mantra is now the official stance of the U.S. Federal Reserve, European Central Bank and the Bank of England, as well as being echoed by monetary policy-makers from Oslo to Tapei. U.S. Federal Reserve policymakers had a similar message on Wednesday. Turkey's central bank confirmed its hawkish turn while in Asia, Taiwan's central bank flagged continued tight policy. Reuters Graphics"TIPPING POINT"Belgian central bank chief and ECB board member Pierre Wunsch - an early voice urging tougher central bank action to counter inflation from end-2021 - said on Thursday that monetary policy was now at the right level. That said, the prospect that global interest rates are pretty close to peak will be of huge relief to emerging economies suffering from heavy debt servicing loads.

Persons: Jerome Powell, Christine Lagarde, Kazuo Ueda, Ann, BoE, Andrew Bailey, Pierre Wunsch, Wunsch, COVID lockdowns, Jerome, Powell, Krishna Guha, Howard Schneider, Balazs Koranyi, Catherine Evans Organizations: European Central Bank, Bank of Japan, Kansas City Federal, REUTERS, U.S . Federal Reserve, Bank of England, U.S . Federal, Swiss National Bank, South African Reserve Bank, People's Bank of, Reuters, ECB, Reuters Global Markets, Economics, Sterling, Swiss, United, Thomson Locations: Jackson Hole , Wyoming, U.S, Central, Oslo, Tapei, Europe, Norway, Sweden, Asia, People's Bank of China, Belgian, United States, Ukraine, Washington, Frankfurt, London, Stockholm, Zurich, Ankara

☆ No strong case for jacking up bank charges: ECB's Wunsch
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Sept 21 (Reuters) - There are no strong arguments for the European Central Bank to increase mandatory reserves for banks, Belgian central bank chief Pierre Wunsch said on Thursday, weighing in on a key debate about a potential move to tighten policy further. The ECB cut to zero the rate it pays to banks on mandatory reserves earlier this year. Some policymakers are now pushing for an increase in the reserve requirement, in part to reduce losses associated with the multi-trillion-euro pool of excess liquidity sloshing around banks. "I don't see any strong argument for using movements in the reserve requirements when we still have this huge portfolio (of bonds) that we can reduce," Wunsch told the Reuters Global Markets Forum. But Wunsch said that reducing central bank losses should not be the objective of monetary policy and changing the rules now could make commercial banks wary of taking part in future stimulus schemes.

Persons: Pierre Wunsch, Wunsch, Banks, Divya Chowdhury, Balazs Koranyi, Jane Merriman, Chizu Organizations: European Central Bank, ECB, Reuters Global Markets, Thomson Locations: Belgian, Mumbai

☆ Belgium's central bank governor: Core inflation needs to go down before there is a pause in rate hikes
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailBelgium's central bank governor: Core inflation needs to go down before there is a pause in rate hikesPierre Wunsch, governor at the National Bank of Belgium, speaks to CNBC's Annette Weisbach from the ECB's Sintra Forum.

Persons: Pierre Wunsch, CNBC's Annette Weisbach Organizations: National Bank of Belgium Locations: Sintra

☆ ECB policymakers line up behind rate hike plans
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Underlying inflation eased to 5.3% in May, but a big chunk of the drop was due to a one-off administrative discount in German transport prices. Wunsch has said in the past that the ECB's deposit rate could hit 4% if underlying inflation did not moderate. Joining the chorus behind rate hikes, Estonian central bank chief Madis Muller said more rate action is needed. "Euro zone interest rates have not yet peaked," Muller said in a statement. "The ultimate goal is clear for the central bank - we need to quickly get the price rise under control."

Persons: Joachim Nagel, Pierre Wunsch, Wunsch, Austria's Robert Holzmann, Gediminas Simkus, Madis Muller, " Muller, Balazs Koranyi, Andrius Sytas, Julia Payne, Francois Murphy, Terje Solsvik, Alex Richardson, Toby Chopra, Jan Harvey Organizations: Central Bank, ECB, Thomson Locations: FRANKFURT, Belgian, U.S, Estonian

LONDON, May 1 (Reuters) - Inflation in the euro area is too high for comfort, meaning markets expect the European Central Bank to deliver its seventh straight interest rate hike on Thursday. 1/ How much will the ECB hike rates by on Thursday? Most analysts expect at least one more rate move after Thursday, even as the Federal Reserve looks set to pause its rate hike campaign. Market pricing suggests ECB rates will peak around 3.6% this year, and Belgium's central bank governor Pierre Wunsch says he wouldn't be surprised to see rates rise to 4%. Tuesday's bank lending should offer some clues but it might be too early to gauge the full impact of the March banking crisis on financing conditions.

Companies European Central Bank FollowLONDON, April 24 (Reuters) - France's central bank governor François Villeroy de Galhau has pushed back against criticism of central banks' increasing involvement in the fight against climate change, calling the issue a "must have" focus. "Central banks' core mandate worldwide is price stability, and climate change already affects the level of prices and activity," Villeroy stressed. The debate about how much influence central banks can have in tackling climate issues has become increasingly divisive this year. Villeroy, however, who has long been a firm advocate of doing more, urged central banks and others to come up with better models of how climate change is likely to alter economies. It is also aiming to release short-term climate change scenarios by the end of 2024, which should show more adverse developments, incorporate tougher "shocks" and directly explore the potential impacts of climate change on inflation.

☆ Dollar slides as rate cuts priced in; yen falls ahead of BOJ meeting
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The dollar fell to a more than one-week low against major currencies on Monday in generally thin trading, as investors continued to price in interest rate cuts this year by the Federal Reserve after a widely expected rate increase at next week's policy meeting. Fed policymakers are widely expected to raise rates by another 25 bps at next week's meeting, but they are seen pausing in June. The rate futures market has also factored in roughly 50 bps of rate cuts by the end of the year. There were likewise hawkish remarks from Belgian central bank chief and ECB policy maker Pierre Wunsch. Beyond the excitement of the euro/yen cross, currency markets were quiet, as traders waited for key central bank meetings, the first of which is the BOJ on Friday, the first Ueda will chair.

☆ Exclusive: Calls grow for quick end to ECB bond-scheme reinvestment
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Balazs Koranyi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

It is already letting 15 billion euros worth of these bonds expire each month. The sources said the ECB should not implement a hard stop, however, and could stay flexible to react to episodes like last month's banking sector volatility. But when markets are calm, like now, the ECB should let all maturing debt expire, they said. Redemptions fluctuate but about 148 billion euros' worth of debt expires in the second half of the year, so a full reinvestment stop would see an extra 58 billion euros' worth of maturities on top of the currently scheduled 15 billion euros per month. The sources said that once these reinvestments end, the next discussion would be about reinvestments in the 1.68 trillion euro Pandemic Emergency Purchase Programme, which are set to continue until the end of 2024.

☆ ECB needs more rate hikes and faster balance sheet cuts, Wunsch says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Balazs Koranyi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, April 14 (Reuters) - The European Central Bank should speed up the reduction of its balance sheet and could stop reinvesting cash from debt maturing in its largest bond buying scheme to complement further interest rate hikes, Belgian policymaker Pierre Wunsch said. Fighting stubborn inflation, the ECB has raised rates at its fastest pace on record and has been shrinking its bloated balance sheet, all in the hope that more expensive borrowing will thwart demand and curb inflation. "The market has reacted very well, and our balance sheet is still too big," he said. "If there's another upside surprise in core inflation and the (ECB's quarterly) lending survey doesn't look too bad, we might have to do 50," he said. "What is really concerning is that in December we projected core inflation stabilising at 5% before its decline," Wunsch said.

☆ Inflation: We have to be more dependent on incoming data, says ECB official
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailInflation: We have to be more dependent on incoming data, says ECB officialPierre Wunsch, member of the European Central Bank Governing Council, says it can now afford to be more sensitive to where inflation is going on a monthly basis.

☆ UBS mulls Credit Suisse takeover amid US bank fallout: What you need to know
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DEVELOPMENTS* A takeover of Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) by UBS (UBSG.S) could see the Swiss government offer a guarantee against the risks involved, two people with knowledge of the matter said. * U.S. investment giant BlackRock (BLK.N) denied a report in the Financial Times that it was participating in a rival bid for all or parts of Credit Suisse. * The lightning speed of the banking industry's descent into turmoil has shaken global markets and governments, reviving eerie memories of the global financial crisis. * Goldman Sachs cut its recommendation on exposure to European bank debt to neutral from overweight, saying a lack of clarity on Credit Suisse's future path would put pressure on the broader sector. Fed faces calls to pause* Bank panic raises specter of 2008, may bring lasting changeCompiled by Reuters editorsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/2] A view shows the logo of the European Central Bank (ECB) outside its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany March 16, 2023. The ECB has hiked rates by 350 basis points since last July, lifting its benchmark refinancing rate to 3.5% on Thursday. Wunsch said the ECB had a "long way to go" if its baseline inflation forecast materialised. Credit Suisse was dealing with "a longstanding restructuring problem", he added. Asked about the future of Credit Suisse, Wunsch said he only saw a "very low" likelihood that the bank might go bankrupt.

☆ ECB likely to keep boosting interest rates, Belgian central-bank chief says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

FRANKFURT/BRUSSELS, March 18 (Reuters) - The ECB is likely to keep raising interest rates as a repeat of the 2008 financial crisis is unlikely with European banks subject to tougher rules than regional U.S. banks, Belgian central bank chief Pierre Wunsch said. It will meeting by meeting," Wunsch said. "If you look at the Belgian banks, they are more solid than the average of European banks. "We do neither see a risk of contagion nor a risk of instability if we look at the figures from a rational perspective," the central bank governor said. Asked about the future of Credit Suisse, Wunsch said he only saw a "very low" likelihood that the bank might go bankrupt.

☆ ECB's Wunsch does not see repeat of 2008 financial crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRUSSELS, March 18 (Reuters) - ECB Governing Council member Pierre Wunsch does not expect a repeat of the 2008 financial crisis despite turbulence caused by the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, arguing European banks were subject to tougher rules than regional U.S. banks. "We don't have any information indicating the European banks to be vulnerable," Wunsch, also governor of the Belgian central bank BNB, told Belgian news paper L'Echo in an interview published on Saturday. "If you look at the Belgian banks, they are more solid than the average of European banks. "We do neither see a risk of contagion nor a risk of instability if we look at the figures from a rational perspective," the central bank governor said. Asked about the future of Credit Suisse, Wunsch said he only saw a "very low" likelihood that the bank might go bankrupt.

☆ Fears of European industry exodus to U.S. may be overdone
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Philip Blenkinsop | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

However, the risks are offset not only by the substantial existing European incentives, but also other factors - such as proximity to European consumers - that many companies cite as critical in their decisions. Think tank Bruegel says EU support is already on a par with, or even larger than, IRA money. Moreover, well over half of the IRA support is for renewable energy production, with local content requirements playing a very limited role. Some executives say rather than providing more subsidies, Europe needs to simply improve the way they are given. The United States is not a panacea for European firms, not least due to questions about what approach the next U.S. administration might take.

☆ Morgan Stanley, others now forecast 4% peak for key ECB rate
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Sudip Kar-Gupta | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 3 (Reuters) - Morgan Stanley and two other investment banks have revised their forecasts for the European Central Bank's terminal rate - the level at which its key interest rate will peak - to 4% as inflationary pressures weigh. BNP Paribas and Barclays joined Morgan Stanley in the upward revisions. Morgan Stanley and BNP Paribas had previously seen the terminal rate at 3.25%. Barclays said in a note to clients that it expects 50 basis point rate increases in March and May, and 25 basis point rises in June and July. JP Morgan this week raised its forecast for the terminal rate to 3.75% from 3.50%.

☆ Morgan Stanley forecasts key ECB rate to peak at 4%
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Sudip Kar-Gupta | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PARIS, March 3 (Reuters) - Wall Street bank Morgan Stanley on Friday raised its forecast for the European Central Bank's (ECB) so-called terminal rate - the level to which it believes the ECB's key interest rate will rise - to 4% as inflationary pressures weigh on the euro zone. "Following material revisions to our inflation forecast, we now expect the ECB's terminal rate at 4%," the bank wrote in a research note. The move by Morgan Stanley, which had previously seen the ECB terminal rate at 3.25%, follows similar revisions by other leading investment banks, driven by inflationary pressures within the euro zone. JP Morgan this week raised its forecast on the ECB's 'terminal' rate to 3.75% from 3.50% previously. On Friday, ECB governing council member and Belgian national bank governor Pierre Wunsch said the ECB could consider raising its key interest rate to as high as 4% if underlying inflation in the euro zone remains persistently high.

LONDON, March 3 (Reuters) - Oil prices slumped on Friday after the Wall Street Journal reported that the United Arab Emirates had an internal debate about leaving OPEC and pumping more oil, but retraced some losses after a source told Reuters this was not true. Oil prices this week had been boosted by strong Chinese economic data, underpinning hopes for oil demand growth, but those gains were all but erased on Friday. "The driver was the WSJ story, with concerns that this might impact the OPEC+ production (cut) deal. China's seaborne imports of Russian oil are set to hit a record high this month. The world's top oil importer is becoming increasingly ambitious with its 2023 growth target, aiming as high as 6%, sources told Reuters.

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