ECB: it is possible that the euro zone will enter recession in the 2nd half of 2023, says Guindos

The vice-president of the European Central Bank (ECB), Luis de Guindos, said this Wednesday (10) that the economic outlook for the euro zone “is tilted downwards” and that growth behavior is “more disappointing”. According to him, it is possible that the bloc will have entered a technical recession in the second half of 2023.

In a speech given during an event in Madrid, the Spanish capital, Guindos also said that the rapid pace of disinflation observed in the euro zone in 2023 is expected to slow down in 2024 and temporarily pause at the beginning of this year.

Guindos also reiterated that future ECB interest rate decisions will continue to depend on economic data and that the current level of rates “should make a substantial contribution to the timely return of inflation to the official target” of 2%, “if maintained for a sufficiently early period.” .

In December, the ECB left its key interest rates unchanged.