European Central Bank (ECB) Executive Board member Fabio Panetta told reporters on Saturday that the policymakers are increasingly leaning towards the possibility of beginning to loosen the bank's monetary policy.
"It seems to me that a fairly general consensus has emerged on the possibility of a rate cut," he remarked, adding that inflation risks are "diminishing."
On a different topic, talking about Italy-Russia relations, Panetta stressed that Italian banks must "get out" of Russia, as staying there creates "reputational problem[s]." "There are objective difficulties because getting out of Russia is complicated, you have to find a buyer knowing that you are being forced, it can be expensive, however, you have to get out because there is a reputational problem," he explained.