ECB’s Draghi: Recent economic developments have been weaker than expected

Below are some key takeaways from the speech delivered by Mario Draghi, President of the European Central Bank, at plenary debate of the European Parliament about the ECB’s annual report 2017 in Strasbourg.

• Recent economic developments have been weaker than expected and uncertainties, notably related to global factors, remain prominent.
• A significant amount of monetary policy stimulus is still needed.
• The credibility of the ECB rests on its independence.
• Our forward guidance on the key ECB interest rates continues to provide the necessary degree of monetary accommodation for the sustained convergence of inflation to our aim.