ECB's Kazaks says 25bp rate hike possible in May

A top European Central Bank official left the door open to a downshift in the pace of interest rate hikes.

In remarks on Monday, the head of Latvia's monetary authority, Martins Kazaks, said there was "every possibility" that the ECB's governing council might opt for a 25 basis point hike at next meeting in May, Bloomberg reported citing Latvia's Leta news agency.

However, a further 50bp move wasn't an option that could be ignored, he reportedly added.

For her part, in remarks made overnight to CBS's Face The Nation programme, ECB chief, Christine Lagarde, said that if lenders didn't lend "too much" that might reduce the work that the ECB needed to do in order to reduce inflation.

But she also pointed out the possibility that lenders might restrict credit too much.

Lagarde was due to speak at the US Council on Foreign Relations at 1600 GMT.