Eurosystem

Greek banks made new purchases of bonds and investment assets amounting to 9.3 billion euros in 2023, financed by the excess liquidity secured through the increase in deposits, as in the absence of sufficient demand for new loans the credit sector is looking for investment opportunities with high yields.

Business activity in the eurozone picked up in April thanks to "increasingly robust" growth in the services sector, a closely watched survey showed on April 23.

Experts suggest that Bulgaria's admission to the Eurozone is more realistic in January 2026, according to insights from Cinzia Alcidi of the Brussels Center for the Study of European Politics, as reported by Politico.

The inflation that has squeezed European shoppers fell more than expected in March to 2.4 percent, as cost spikes in the grocery aisle eased and overall price rises headed down in the two biggest economies, Germany and France.

The interest rate hikes by the European Central Bank and the increase in net interest income lead to an excessive accumulation of profits in Greek and European banks and fuel the inflation of banking greed ("bankflation"), warns the Center for Planning and Economic Research (KEPE).

The European Central Bank is expected to freeze interest rates again this week, with officials wary of starting to cut before they see more evidence that recent falls in inflation will be sustained.

The European Central Bank meets on Thursday, with markets eyeing any nudge towards an interest rate cut as inflation weakens.

The ECB, expected to hold rates at a record 4%, is navigating a tricky path between keeping rates high long enough to contain inflation while not cutting too late as price pressures ease quickly.

The European Central Bank won't have enough information to decide on interest-rate cuts until June, even as inflation seems to be on track to reach the 2% target this year, Bank of Greece chief Yannis Stournaras has said.

Speaking to Bloomberg, he said that the "recent set of data suggests we will reach 2% in the autumn of this year."

Bank of Greece Governor Yannis Stournaras has told Kathimerini he expects the European Central Bank to start reducing interest rates this summer, as inflation is easing much faster than expected.

European Central Bank (ECB) Governor Christine Lagarde suggested on Wednesday that the ECB might implement interest rate cuts in the summer. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Lagarde noted that sufficient data on wage growth would be available by "late spring," enabling central bankers to determine whether eurozone inflation is set to rise or fall.