The measures adopted by the ECB Governing Council have greatly curtailed the risk of deflation and paved the way for a gradual return to monetary stability.
The rise in inflation in December is, however, largely ascribable to the energy components of the HICP and to other highly volatile items; there are as yet no clear indications of any inversion of trend in the core components driving developments in consumer prices and wage growth, even in countries where unemployment is lower.