Wall Street Journal
April 8, 2011
So, the European Central Bank really meant it.
For a month, its officials had been musing publicly about price pressures, threats to stability and all the other things central bankers point out—apropos of nothing, you understand—when they really want to prime markets for higher interest rates. For some reason lost to history they always leave a little leeway for doubt and avoid explicitly promising to do the deed.
But sure enough, in the end, the ECB went ahead Thursday and added the expected 25 basis points to the main refinancing rate.
This may only be a small move in absolute terms, but as a signal it's a much bigger deal. Nothing less than the first withdrawal of ECB emergency cuts put in place as the global economy tottered back in 2008, it means the bank thinks its part of that economy no longer needs the first-aid kit.
The euro zone is back.
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