Lagarde’s lack of a clear signal keeps interest rate debate alive

Christine Lagarde’s silence regarding further interest rates policies had kept speculation raging in what is expected to be a pivotal week in the euro zone.

While the European Central Bank’s president acknowledged late last week that inflation remains undefeated, she didn’t address prospects for next month’s meeting, giving colleagues scope to publicly debate the need for increasing borrowing costs just as crucial data is published.

Consumer-price numbers will set the scene for one of the ...