European Central Bank raises interest rates

 

The European Central Bank raised interest rates to their highest in more than two decades as a measure to curb inflation.  Unlike the U.S. Federal Reserve, which stood pat yesterday, European policymakers lifted rates by a quarter of a point to 3.5%. This is the highest the interest rate has been since 2001 for the 20 countries that utilize the Euro currency. Officials said inflation was forecast to remain too high for too long. This was expected following May's meeting of the Bank's Governing Council, where concerns were expressed about inflation pressures from wage growth. It is "very like" the Bank will raise rates again in July, according to Christine Lagarde, the president of the European Central Bank.