ECB's Makhlouf: Concerned about higher-for-longer energy price scenario

European Central Bank (ECB) Governing Council member Gabriel Makhlouf said on Friday that without a clear timeline for the end of the conflict in the Middle East, he is concerned about a "higher-for-longer" energy price scenario, per Reuters.

Key takeaways

"Inflation expectations need to be closely monitored for signs of de-anchoring."

"I will be paying close attention to indirect effects such as cost-push inflation in production, transportation, and services."

"Potential second-round effects via wages will take longer to show up, given the staggered nature of wage-setting."

Market reaction

EUR/USD holds its ground in the American session and trades in positive territory above 1.1750.

May 1, 2026

Fed's Hammack: Uncertainty around economy, policy path has risen

In a statement published on Friday, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland President Beth Hammack explained her decision to dissent against the Fed keeping an easing bias in the policy statement, saying that a "clear easing bias" is no longer appropriate given the current outlook.

AUD/USD holds steady near recent highs ahead of expected RBA rate hike

AUD/USD trades around 0.7200 on Friday at the time of writing, virtually unchanged on the day and holding near recent highs, as markets adopt a wait-and-see approach ahead of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) monetary policy decision scheduled for Tuesday.