(Bloomberg) -- European Central Bank Governing Council member Fabio Panetta said the growth in consumer prices is easing quickly and the time to lower interest rates is approaching.

“The ECB’s restrictive monetary policy is compressing demand and contributing, along with the drop in energy prices, to the rapid reduction of inflation,” the dovish head of Italy’s central bank said Thursday in a speech in Rome. “Risks for price stability have decreased and the conditions for a monetary loosening are coming about.”

ECB officials appear to have agreed on June as the starting point to unwind their unprecedented bout of rate hikes. Once that process starts, however, hawks are urging caution in further steps, while doves would like borrowing costs to be cut speedily as the continent’s economy struggles to grow.

Turning to the Bank of Italy’s performance in 2023, Panetta said a profit of €0.8 billion ($863 million) was recorded in 2023, after provisions were used to cover a loss of €7.1 billion resulting from factors including interest payments to banks.

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