Economists expect the European Central Bank (ECB) to cut interest rates in the second quarter of 2024. That is earlier than recently predicted. In the November survey, 55 percent expected the ECB not to cut rates until mid-year at the earliest.
Consumer prices in the eurozone rose by only 2.4 percent in November compared to the same month last year (see video above). This is the lowest figure since July 2021. In the autumn of 2022, inflation sometimes even exceeded ten percent. Recent inflation makes another interest rate hike unlikely, ECB Director Isabel Schnabel said on Tuesday. Only a month ago she had advised against taking any further increases off the table.
A survey was published on Thursday showing that economists expect an interest rate cut of 0.25 percentage points per quarter from the second quarter of 2024.
Eurozone GDP fell slightly
According to Statistics Austria, inflation in Austria was still significantly higher than the average of the euro countries at 5.4 percent in November. In the eurozone, gross domestic product (GDP) fell by 0.1 percent from July to September compared to the previous quarter. The economy had grown slightly in the spring, but only half as much as reported.
According to ECB President Christine Lagarde, the last quarter of the year is also likely to be weak. Some experts assume that the economy in the community of twenty countries is threatened with a temporary recession, i.e. two quarters of declining economic output.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
