By Jorge Valero | Updated on Oct 08, 2026 at 05:47 PM
The European Central Bank has the instruments to stabilize financial markets if required, President Christine Lagarde told euro-area finance ministers.
Asked at a closed-door meeting in Luxembourg about sovereign spreads, she reiterated the ECB’s position that the institution is attentive to the good functioning of financial markets, according to people familiar with the talks, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Lagarde added that the ECB has instruments to counter unwarranted, disorderly market dynamics that threaten the smooth transmission of monetary policy, subject to clear eligibility criteria.
She declined to comment on individual countries.
A sudden selloff of French bonds has stirred memories of the sovereign debt crisis that cascaded across Europe between 2009 and 2015 and drawn attention to how the ECB might respond · .
Turning to consumer-price growth, Lagarde said that energy prices are rising steeply, but there are no signs yet of inflation broadening.