Overview
- The ECB kept the deposit rate, the rate banks earn on cash at the central bank, at 2.0% and left the main lending rate at 2.15% after Thursday's meeting in Frankfurt.
- The pause now spans seven meetings as policymakers assess whether higher fuel costs will feed through into broader price rises.
- Eurostat said April consumer prices rose 3.0% from a year earlier, while the measure that excludes energy and volatile fresh food stayed near February's level.
- President Christine Lagarde said the Governing Council held a deep debate on raising rates, and traders now see a possible move in June.
- Rising oil and fuel costs tied to the Middle East risk squeezing households and businesses through pricier transport and heating.