(Bloomberg) -- The European Central Bank is confident inflation will converge with its 2% target next year, even if some questions over price pressures in services remain, according to Vice President Luis de Guindos.
At the same time, the economy has disappointed recently as consumption remains weak, Guindos said on a panel in Madrid.
“A summary is that we have good news with respect to inflation, and on growth we have not very good news,” Guindos said. “The main question mark we have, something we have to analyze more is why this is happening, why growth is so fragile. A key factor behind this is the evolution of consumption.”
The ECB has cut interest rates three times since June as inflation retreats and the 20-nation euro economy cools. Another reduction is widely anticipated next month, when policymakers will receive updated projections that will help them judge the outlook for the bloc.
“The question mark is services inflation,” Guindos said. “It’s related to the evolution of wage dynamics, it’s related as well to productivity.”
Wages have risen strongly in response to inflation. While policymakers expect gains to moderate, they’ve argued that consumption should benefit as consumer-price pressures ease.
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