ECB Committed to Bring Inflation to Target Without Undue Delay
Minutes of the European Central Bank’s April meeting showed that the
bank wants to leave absolutely clear that it is committed to revive
inflation in the Eurozone.
"There was general agreement that there was a need to counter the
perception that monetary policy could no longer contribute to a return
of inflation" to the 2% target, the minutes said.
"It was felt that strongly reiterating the Governing Council's
commitment to bring inflation back to target without undue delay and
sticking to its forward guidance was essential to anchor expectations
and support effective monetary transmission."
It was noted that “this was all the more important” as inflation had
been below target for three years, which had raised issues regarding the
notion of the medium term. “It was therefore underlined that it was
essential not to leave any room for doubt about the Governing Council’s
commitment to secure a return of the inflation rate towards its
medium-term aim without undue delay.”
Minutes also showed there was also broad agreement among the Governing
Council that monetary policy measures were being effective and that
there were grounds for cautious optimism about the economy.
The accounts of the meeting also said the ECB aims to start buying
corporate bonds in June and stressed focus should be on implementing its
latest set of measures.