ECB committed to bring inflation to target without undue delay

Minutes of the European Central Bank’s April meeting showed that the bank wants to leave absolutely clear that it is committed to revive inflation in the Eurozone.

"There was general agreement that there was a need to counter the perception that monetary policy could no longer contribute to a return of inflation" to the 2% target, the minutes said.

"It was felt that strongly reiterating the Governing Council's commitment to bring inflation back to target without undue delay and sticking to its forward guidance was essential to anchor expectations and support effective monetary transmission."

It was noted that “this was all the more important” as inflation had been below target for three years, which had raised issues regarding the notion of the medium term. “It was therefore underlined that it was essential not to leave any room for doubt about the Governing Council’s commitment to secure a return of the inflation rate towards its medium-term aim without undue delay.”

Minutes also showed there was also broad agreement among the Governing Council that monetary policy measures were being effective and that there were grounds for cautious optimism about the economy.

The accounts of the meeting also said the ECB aims to start buying corporate bonds in June and stressed focus should be on implementing its latest set of measures.