Lagarde says ECB raised rates 25 bps in September

• The ECB president said headline inflation rose to 3.8% in September.
• The Governing Council raised key ECB rates by 25 basis points in September.
• Lagarde said the digital euro could see a 12-month internal pilot in the second half of 2027.

Action

Christine Lagarde said the Governing Council raised the key ECB interest rates by 25 basis points in September. She said that followed an increase of the same size in June.

Lagarde says ECB raised rates 25 bps in September

Lagarde said the Council would make a comprehensive assessment of incoming data based on its reaction function.

Economic activity

She said the euro area economy has so far proved resilient despite global headwinds and the ongoing energy shock. The September ECB staff projections foresee growth of 0.9% in 2026, 1.4% in 2027 and 1.5% in 2028.

Lagarde said headline inflation increased to 3.8% in September. Core inflation rose to 2.5%.

Effective

Lagarde said the Eurosystem will run a 12-month internal pilot for the digital euro in the second half of 2027. She said adopting the Regulation on the establishment of the digital euro by the end of 2026 is key to making that possible.

She said Pontes, the Eurosystem’s DLT solution, went live on 21 September.

Penalty

No penalty was announced.