Terri Belkas, currency analyst at FXCM - "The European Central Bank
(ECB) is one of the most hawkish and stubborn monetary policy makers,
as they went on the hike rates right up until July as credit conditions
worsened and left rates unchanged at their meeting last week. However,
in an effort to show solidarity with the likes of the Federal Reserve
and Bank of England, the ECB set their primary mandate of price
stability aside for a day to slash rates by 50bps to 3.75 percent.
However, unlike the central banks of the US and UK, the ECB’s
subsequent press release had very little substance, as they simply said
that “upside inflation risks” had decreased, but jumped right back into
hawk mode when they said that by keeping inflation expectations in
check and “securing price stability” would be supportive of economic
growth and financial stability."