Interview with Isabel Schnabel, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, conducted by Wouter Vervenne and Kris van Hamme on 31 May 2023

7 June 2023

Please note that the interview was conducted in English and translated into Dutch and French. In case of discrepancies between the versions, the English version prevails.

People are fed up with inflation. What hope can you offer them? When will inflation return to 2%?

Headline inflation in the euro area has come down relatively quickly after hitting a peak of 10.6% in October of last year. However, underlying inflation (which excludes volatile food and energy prices, Ed.) is more persistent and remains high, with services playing a key role due to the relatively strong impact of wage costs on inflation in these sectors. Rising food prices are also driving inflation, but we expect food inflation to fall in view of the global slowdown in agricultural commodity prices.

According to our March projections, inflation will return to our 2%…