Sotto voce

24 October 2019 By Swaha Pattanaik Follow @swahapattanaik

The outgoing ECB boss says his successor needs no guidance. But his last big news conference contained clues. First, never give up, though economic risks are rife. Second, turn the page on infighting. Third, be wary of financial bubbles. Fourth, expect brickbats, whatever you do.

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Mario Draghi finishes his eight-year term as European Central Bank president on Oct. 31. He will be replaced by Christine Lagarde, a French national who stepped down as head of the International Monetary Fund to take up the top job at the ECB.

“I have no advice for Christine. She knows better than anyone else what to do and what to say,” Draghi told a news conference on Oct. 24, after the ECB left its deposit rate unchanged at minus 0.5%.

Euro zone business activity barely expanded in October, according to the IHS Markit flash purchasing managers’ index published on Oct. 24. The composite PMI was 50.2 in October, little changed from September's reading of 50.1 and still close to the 50 mark that separates growth from contraction.

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