U.S. President Donald Trump’s imposition of tariffs on the EU should be the start of a “march to independence” for the continent, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said Monday.
In an interview with France Inter two days before the U.S. president’s 25 percent tariff on automobile imports is due to take effect, Lagarde said the moment represented a unique opportunity for Europe, despite the likely short-term disruption to the economy.
“I consider it a moment when we can decide together to take our destiny into our own hands, and I think it is a march to independence,” she argued, adding that this applied to the fields of finance and information technology as much as to defense and energy.
In the interview, Lagarde also warned that it is still not possible to declare victory over inflation, given the high degree of uncertainty that persists at a geopolitical level. While the economy has struggled for momentum in recent months, the prospect of a major expansion of public spending in Germany has improved the growth outlook for the eurozone — and also raised the likely trajectory of inflation.
The ECB’s Governing Council in recent days has appeared split over whether or not to carry on cutting interest rates at its next policy meeting on April 17.
“We are nearly at target, but we have to stay there,” Lagarde said.
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