ATHENS (Reuters) – The European Central Bank should continue monetary easing with a series of rate cuts in the coming period as possible further protectionism by the United States could hurt moderate eurozone growth, the bank’s policymaker Yannis Stournaras said late on Thursday.
Any further pressure on world trade from new protectionist measures imposed by the United States and others could weigh on the eurozone’s very moderate growth, leading to below-target inflation in the eurozone, Stournaras said at an event in Athens.
“For these reasons, monetary policy easing should continue with a series of interest rate cuts at the next ECB Governing Council meetings,” he said.
But he warned that the cuts should be gradual and based on evidence.
