European Central Bank Raises Interest Rate to 2.5%

The European Central Bank raised interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point, marking its second increase this year, amid mounting inflationary pressures stemming from rising energy prices following the resumption of hostilities between the United States and Iran. The bank raised its deposit rate to 2.5 percent from 2.25 percent, in a move aimed at containing the wave of inflation fueled by the return of oil prices to levels exceeding $100 per barrel, alongside higher gas prices, which threaten to transmit energy cost pressures to goods and services prices across the eurozone.