The head of the European Central Bank said on Tuesday that the bank must continue raising interest rates to combat inflation, even though the risk of a eurozone recession has increased.
Last month, the central bank raised the interest rate by 75 basis points to 1.5%, the highest level since 2009. The European Central Bank has raised interest rates by a total of 200 basis points in the last three sessions; earlier, the bank had kept rates below 0% for eight years.
“Our mandate is price stability and we have to deliver on that using all the tools we have available,” said ECB President Christine Lagarde. “We are determined to do what is necessary to bring inflation back to our 2% target,” she added.
“The destination is clear, and we are not there yet,” Lagarde said without specifying where rate hikes might end. “We will have further rate increases in the future.”
