Offshore interest rates ‘to stay low in eurozone’
The eurozone is not likely to see any increase in interest rates in the next year, economists have predicted in a new survey.
A poll by Reuters of 75 experts found that all of them expect the governing council of the European Central Bank (ECB) to hold the main refinancing operations rate at its current one per cent figure when it meets on August 6th.
The consensus among the economists was that the ECB will not raise the rate again until at least the fourth quarter of 2010.
Commenting on the situation, one of the economists, Robert Barrie of Credit Suisse, told Reuters: "The economy is hopefully heading towards recovery but we are not likely to see growth until next year, so rates will be on hold for some time yet."
The current interest rate was set when it was trimmed from 1.25 per cent at the governing council’s May meeting.
It had been as high as 3.75 per cent before the November 2008 meeting.
Written by Jamie Musk