Danske Bank: The market generally expects the European Central Bank to cut interest rates by 25 basis points
Danske Bank said that the ECB's policy decision is basically guided by another 25 basis points cut, bringing the policy rate to 2.75%. This is the consensus expectation of analysts and the market. Given the recent uncertainty prevailing in the Trump administration and the continued resilience of the domestic economy, we do not expect a new signal on the ECB's policy rate outlook. As a result, we expect the three-tier response function (inflation outlook, underlying inflation and monetary policy transmission strength) to prevail and expect the ECB to reiterate its data dependence. In addition, the market expects the ECB to cut rates by almost another 100 basis points this year. Although we expect the ECB to cut interest rates by more than that, if Lagarde does not commit to the end of the rate-cutting cycle, the market could repeat the hawkish reaction seen in December.