ECB set to leave rates steady

European Central Bank (ECB) policymakers stood firm on interest rates yesterday, saying they would resist political pressure to cut rates and had done the "maximum possible" to help growth without risking inflation.

Current euro-zone interest rates are appropriate and the ECB's monetary policy has no bias towards a rate rise or cut, Governing Council members Erkki Liikanen, Christian Noyer and Klaus Liebscher said, stressing the ECB's commitment to price stability.

The comments came after Sweden, which is not a euro-zone member, reduced its interest rates by a surprise half percentage point yesterday morning.

The move prompted Germany's economy minister Wolfgang Clement to repeat his calls for a euro-zone cut. He said the Swedish action showed the ECB that it was possible to give further support to growth without causing excessive inflation.

Some economists believe a rate cut could be implemented before the end of the year, as the ECB grudgingly accepts that its calls for greater structural reform in the euro zone have proved virtually ineffective.

Austin Hughes, chief economist with IIB Bank, said yesterday that there was a one-in-three chance of a rate cut, with September the most likely date for a move.

However, Rossa White at Davy is expecting euro-zone rates to remain at 2 per cent until the end of next year. The only risk to this would be a recession in France and Germany, he said. He believes this is highly unlikely, particularly in light of the euro's weakening against the dollar. - (Additional reporting, Reuters)