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Yesterday the Federal Reserve – America’ central bank – released minutes from its latest interest-rate setting meeting. Today, it’s the European Central Bank’s turn, and investors will probably be paying a lot more attention to the details of this particular debate.
Christine Lagarde has just taken over as head of the ECB. Her predecessor Mario Draghi, has handed her a tricky legacy to deal with. On the one hand, during his time in office, Draghi managed to push through monetary policies that made the ECB much like any other global central bank. On the other hand, several member states are uncomfortable with his parting decision to print more money on an effectively open-ended basis. The minutes from the October meeting may give us an insight into just how stressful Lagarde’s early months in the job are going to be.
In the UK, the Royal Mail reports on the six months to the end of September. The backdrop for the group is extremely tough, and investors will be hoping for signs that its turnaround plans are working.