The President of the Republic recommended this Wednesday to the European Central Bank (ECB) is given “great weight” in the speech on interest rates, to avoid “worries, disruptions” in the lives of Europeans.
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa spoke to the media from the Faculty of Law of the University of Lisbon about the recent statements by the President of the ECB that foresaw further interest rate hikes.
When asked about these statements by Christine Lagarde, made in Portugal, at an ECB forum in Sintra, the head of state began by defending that “wait for the evolution of inflation and the decision of the central banks”.
“But I also think central banks should be very careful about what they say in public,” added Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, who avoided naming the ECB president in his response.
“A lot of attention needs to be paid to what is being said about interest rates. We see countries like the United States of America flipping policy and not raising interest rates. We see other central banks understanding the opposite – and I respect their decisions – But it is it not worth it at the moment to create even more concerns and disruptions in what is already a difficult life for many Europeans and several Portuguese,” he stressed.
The president of the republic said he remembers “hearing central bankers say not long ago that interest rates would not rise for quite some time,” and that he now hears them “say that it is possible that they are not only going to rise this year, but who knows next year”.
“This is having a disruptive effect on people, economies and markets that is not good for anyone,” he argued.
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa declined to comment on Christine Lagarde’s words linking salary increases to inflation: “I didn’t want to do what I don’t think is a good idea to do”.
“What is required of governments and political authorities, all of them, and central banks is to be very careful in the speech that you have because it is very sensitive to people’s day-to-day lives,” he stressed.
Source: DN
