To guide its monetary policy decisions and maintain price stability, the European Central Bank (ECB)´s Governing Council bases its decisions on a strategy which determines its monetary policy stance.
The current monetary policy strategy
was announced in June 2025. It confirmed the medium-term inflation target of 2%. This target is symmetric, meaning that deviations above or below 2% are equally undesirable. Therefore, the ECB’s Governing Council will respond to deviations in both directions, making use of the full set of monetary policy instruments.
Among its changes, the current strategy acknowledges the importance of using scenario and sensitivity analyses to account for the risks and uncertainties surrounding the economy and inflation. Although price stability remains its primary objective, the Governing Council also considers other factors such as employment, financial stability, and climate change. Finally, in its strategy, the ECB acknowledges the importance of adapting its communication to clearly explain its decisions to all its audiences.
As defined in 2021, the ECB’s monetary policy strategy will be reviewed periodically to adapt it to future changes in the economy. The next review is expected for 2030.
