ECB Official Signals Potential Pause in Interest Rate Cuts

Director Isabel Schnabel suggests the central bank may soon reconsider its series of rate reductions as financial markets react.

Isabel Schnabel, a prominent European Central Bank (ECB) director, indicated the possibility of pausing or stopping the ongoing series of interest rate cuts.
The ECB has reduced its key deposit rate five times since last summer, with another 0.25 percentage point cut anticipated in March.
Schnabel emphasized the need to begin discussions about the future direction of monetary policy, though no decisions have been made yet.
Market reactions to Schnabel's comments, combined with concerns over potential U.S. auto tariffs, led to a decline in Germany's DAX index.
The current deposit rate stands at 2.75%, and financial markets are uncertain about further reductions beyond the expected March cut.