After the United States, the spotlight will be on Europe

The coming week promises to be crucial for interest rates in the Eurozone. On Thursday, the ECB President will hold the traditional press conference following the monthly monetary policy meeting. While we do not expect any major announcement, the ECB will probably be asked about the recent rise in interest rates. We expect the ECB’s communication to be very accommodating. Furthermore, close tabs need to be kept on the vaccination campaign, as on the health front, the gap is widening between the United States and Europe. In an extreme doomsday scenario, where the best vaccination rates observed thus far were maintained both sides of the Atlantic, the United States would achieve herd immunity sometime in May 2021, whereas the European Union would still be grappling with the epidemic until March 2022.