Europeans Expected to Keep Lid on Interest

The European Central Bank is expected to keep borrowing costs in the 12 countries using the euro unchanged Thursday even as evidence mounts that growth is slowing, economists said.

The ECB, faced with accelerating inflation, will keep its benchmark interest rate at 4.5%, according to all but one of the 12 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News.

The ECB’s mandate to fight inflation makes it hard to justify an interest rate reduction this week. Price rises have exceeded the central bank’s goal of 2% for 11 months.

“The ECB is still in a bind,” said Stefan Bielmeier, an economist at Deutsche Bank Research.