ECB inches toward start of rate hikes

The ECB is inching closer to a time when it will end its huge bond-buying programme of pumping money into the financial system, which will signal the start of hikes in interest rates for the first time since the crisis, writes Eamon Quinn.

After a key meeting in Frankfurt, central bank head Mario Draghi said the eurozone’s economic turnaround gave the ECB the confidence to tone down its bond-buying pledge, though he also warned against rising trade protectionism and financial deregulation.