ECB: Draghi’s speech in focus – Lloyds Bank

Analysts at Lloyds Bank point out that ECB head Mario Draghi will speak to the Dutch parliament today and will be the key event for today.

Key Quotes

“With the French presidential election now out of the way and Eurozone economic data continuing to improve, speculation will likely grow ahead of the next ECB policy meeting as to whether the central bank will soon change tack on monetary policy. We expect the ECB to move cautiously. The June meeting may see the removal of the downside rate bias in the ECB’s forward guidance. This should pave the way for an announcement, in the autumn, of a further reduction in monthly asset purchases from early next year. However, during today’s appearance Draghi may try to avoid hinting at those developments but instead reiterate the message of last month’s ECB meeting. This was that while the economic recovery is “increasingly solid”, he still wants to see more convincing signs that Eurozone inflation can be sustained near the ECB’s target.”