Philip R. Lane, ECB Board Member, discusses European economic growth, inflation, and interest rates in interview with Le Monde.

Philip R. Lane, a member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank (ECB), stated in an interview with Le Monde that the European economy has been growing in the first few months of 2023, avoiding a recession that seemed inevitable at the beginning of the year. He explained that the fall in energy prices, particularly gas prices, and the easing of bottlenecks have contributed to this growth. However, he also emphasized that there are still factors that are causing significant uncertainty, such as the war in Ukraine and the impact of monetary tightening. Lane stated that inflation is under control and is expected to continue falling due to the easing of supply chain bottlenecks, but the ECB aims to return inflation to 2% within a reasonable time period. Lane mentioned that interest rate increases have caused a fall in demand for mortgages and investment in firms, but the impacts will continue to play out. For the next Governing Council meeting on 4 May, the current data indicates that rates should be raised again.