The International Monetary Fund supported the ECB, saying that the leadership made the right decision to keep its easy monetary policy in place as inflation in the region is likely to ease after a "short-term surge" amid supply woes.
The IMF said that based on the latest economic data, it can be assumed that wages in the eurozone will grow only slightly, and consumer inflation will eventually return to the ECB's target of 2%.
"According to our forecasts, after the coronavirus pandemic subsides, consumer inflation will fall slightly below 2%,” the IMF said.
"The ECB did the right thing by deciding to maintain an adaptive policy until its medium-term inflation target is reached. At the same time, the ECB indicated that it could adjust the policy course if higher inflation persists," the IMF noted.
The IMF said that if it were not for supply constraints, eurozone GDP would be 2% higher in 2021, and added that supply chain disruptions were the main factor for half the increase in euro area producer price inflation excluding energy prices. In addition, the IMF warned that against the background of an increase in cases of coronavirus, supply chain problems may persist until 2023.