Inflation FEAR: Why Europe is VERY worried about inflation with pressure piling on the EU

Germany’s criticism of the ECB is gaining ground, with Christian Lindner, a contender for the post of finance minister in the next government, saying he was worried about the ECB’s purchasing of bonds.

Mr Lindner said last week: “The fact that the ECB seems to be acting differently than the [US Federal Reserve] at the moment may, unfortunately, underpin my fear.”

Ms Lagarde, speaking last week, said the bank had not lost commitment to its targets, but that it didn’t see a significant risk of persistent price pressures.

She said: “If persistent bottlenecks feed through into higher than anticipated wage rises or the economy returns more quickly to full capacity, price pressures could become stronger.”