Account of the monetary policy meeting of the Governing Council of the European Central Bank held in Frankfurt am Main on Wednesday and Thursday, 29-30 April 2026

28 May 2026

1. Review of financial, economic and monetary developments and policy options

Financial market developments

Ms Schnabel started her presentation by noting that since the Governing Council’s previous monetary policy meeting on 18-19 March 2026, movements in euro area financial markets had continued to be driven by developments in the Middle East and their impact on energy prices. Amid elevated volatility, markets continued to expect the oil price shock to be persistent. Although upside risks had moderated, oil was priced significantly higher, over an extended period of time, than it had been before the start of the war in the Middle East. As a result, markets continued to price in a notable and sustained inflationary impact. Inflation fixings had increased further for both 2026 and 2027. This suggested that…