The eurozone economy remains fragile and requires additional support from the European Central Bank (ECB), according to ECB policymaker Mario Centeno. In an interview with La Stampa published Sunday, Centeno said current conditions do not support stable 2% inflation — the ECB’s long-term target — without more stimulus.
Earlier this month, the ECB delivered its eighth interest rate cut in a year but signaled a pause in July. Centeno, who will step down as Portugal’s central bank governor before the ECB’s next policy meeting on July 23–24, supports continued rate reductions.
“The level of rates must align with an economy capable of generating stable 2% inflation. That economy doesn’t yet exist in the euro area,” he said. “Supply and demand conditions are still too weak to return to target without more stimulus.”
Centeno emphasized that policy decisions would continue to be made on a meeting-by-meeting basis but stressed that the current economic imbalance justifies further easing.