ECB raises interest rates to fight off inflation jump

Bond yields have also increased sharply, mostly reflecting similar rises for U.S. Treasuries, tightening financing conditions and doing some of the central bank's work for it.

These factors suggest that even if price pressures persist, they are far less than in 2022, when inflation shot past 10% as energy prices spiked following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Attention now turns to ECB President Christine Lagarde's 1245 GMT press conference.

High energy costs suggest persistent inflation, and all hopes are gone for a quick end to the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, which began in late February. High natural gas prices are a growing worry, too, with gas storage levels below historic norms as the winter heating season approaches.