December CPI data may lead to faster rate cuts - ECB Centeno

According to ECB Governing Council member Mário Centeno, the European Central Bank will not have to wait until May to decide on interest rate changes. The banker stressed in an interview with Econostream on Friday (the transcript was published only today) that the ECB would be able to start easing monetary policy earlier than was thought until recently (however, he declined to give an exact date; Centeno noted the ECB's dependence on data).

"December's Eurozone HICP of 2.9%, although up from the previous month, was nevertheless lower than expected, and thus 'good news' that fits into the narrative that looser monetary policy is becoming possible sooner than anticipated not long ago," - the banker said.

However, the mere publication of the transcript of the ECB member's speech did not trigger a market reaction. The EURUSD pair is losing slightly in intraday terms.

Source: xStation