Weekend: ECB chief economist Philip Lane nominates June 'key data' for rate cuts

<p> European Central Bank chief economist Philip Lane spoke in an interview with Italian daily Il Corriere della Sera, the interview was published on Saturday.</p><p>Lane discussed key wages data not becoming available until June (the ECB meet on the 6th that month)</p><ul><li>"By our June meeting, we will have those important data"</li></ul><p>I don't believe that Lane is seriously entertaining not cutting until June. And, indeed, in the interview he left the door wide open to much earlier cuts:</p><ul><li>"But let me emphasise, we do have other data that we will be looking at every week."</li><li>The ECB's rate rise in September was in part "an insurance" against inflation coming back … and this will be considered when the time comes to ease policy</li></ul><p>The (recent) background to his comments are that markets are pricing a March rate cut from the Bank. I think that 'September was an insurance hike' indicates Lane is considering a March cut is possible too. </p><p>Markets are pricing around 150bp of cuts in 2024. Lane didn't enumerate the cuts but did say he sees a series of cuts to come (a "sequence of rate cuts"). He's an economist thought so he did caveat this:</p><ul><li>"A false dawn, too rapid a recalibration, can be self-defeating"</li></ul><p>—</p><p>ECB dates for this year:</p>

This article was written by Eamonn Sheridan at www.forexlive.com.