Policymakers are ready to boost stimulus measures as early as June after the coronavirus, or Covid-19, pandemic hurt the euro area economy severely and cast a pall over the near term outlook, minutes of the April 29-30 policy session signaled Friday.
"Looking ahead, and in the light of the high uncertainty surrounding the economic and inflation outlook as shown in the scenarios prepared by ECB staff, it was stressed that the ECB needed to stand ready to adjust its monetary policy stance as appropriate and also to ensure the functioning of transmission across the euro area," the minutes, which the ECB calls 'account' revealed. The Pandemic Emergency Purchase Programme, or PEPP, worth EUR 750 billion that the ECB announced in March to support the euro area economy was essential and limited the likelihood of a "self-reinforcing downward spiral", the minutes said. The Governing Council "was fully prepared to increase the size of the PEPP and adjust its composition, and potentially its other instruments, if, in the light of information that became available before its June meeting, it judged that the scale of the stimulus was falling short of what was needed," the minutes said.
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April 24, 2026 15:15 ET Economics news flow was relatively light this week even as the conflict in the Middle East continued, raising concerns for policymakers. In the U.S., spending data, initial jobless claims and pending home sales were the highlights. Business confidence in the biggest euro area economy was in focus in Europe. Inflation data from Japan gained attention in Asia.