Irish bonus as European Central Bank set to keep rates low for longer

Washing over the EU is a flurry of supportive economic figures; from robust unemployment data to solid GDP data.

The eurozone looks to be emerging nicely from years of dampened growth. However, one figure is gnawing at European Central Bank (ECB) members: inflation.

Figures released last week showed headline inflation across the single currency area has dropped from 1.9% in April to 1.4% in the year to May. The ECB’s target is just below 2%; thus the ECB will largely ignore headline inflation as it is skewed by fluctuations in energy prices, food, alcohol, and tobacco.