On Thursday, the European Central Bank decided to lower interest rates by 0.25 percentage points. This action is justified by the expected achievement of the inflation target at 2 percent. After the announcement,

Despite US President Donald Trump's sabre-rattling, the European Central Bank is set to press on with interest rate cuts Thursday as officials increasingly voice confidence that the fight against inflation is on track.

Against this backdrop, the ECB’s communication in the policy statement and President Lagarde’s comments will hold the key to determining the scope and timing of the next rate cuts as the Bank battles concerns over economic growth and potential tariffs by United States (US) President Donald Trump’s administration.

The European Central Bank meets on Thursday for the first time since Donald Trump returned to office, leaving U.S. tariff threats looming over the euro zone's sluggish economy and potentially complicating the economic outlook.

The ECB is expected to drop its main lending rate from 3 per cent to 2.75 per cent, its fifth cut since last July.

Officials reduced the deposit rate by a quarter-point to 2.75% — as predicted by all analysts in a Bloomberg poll.

Eurozone rate-setters are set to cut borrowing costs again this week, confident their efforts to lower inflation will remain on track despite the threat from US President Donald Trump's protectionist agenda.

Speaking at a press conference, ECB President Christine Lagarde suggested “liquid, secure and safe“ standards for central banks likely precluded Bitcoin as a reserve asset.

U.S. President Donald Trump is getting his wish that interest rates drop across the world, just not at home where a strong economy and uncertainty over his own policies have set the stage for the Federal Reserve to diverge from its central bank peers.

European Central Bank Governing Council member Klaas Knot said investor bets for interest-rate cuts in January and March are reasonable, while any commitment beyond is difficult due to heightened global uncertainty.

Global markets will focus on central bank rate decisions and earnings from US tech giants, alongside major European corporate quarterly results.

Speaking to leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Lagarde had to go onto the defensive in the face of criticism from a leading US financier.