You won’t see the back of me before year-end, says ECB’s Lagarde

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde pledged to stay in her role until at least the end of the year, quashing ongoing rumors that she will step down in the near term to take part in France’s 2027 presidential election. Lagarde however did not rule out leaving before the end of her term, which expires in Oct. 2027. The French election will happen in April and May. “I hate to be boxed in in any particular circumstances,” Lagarde told journalists in response to a question from a reporter who asked her to clearly state whether or not she will stay until the end of her term. “You are not going to see the back of me before 2027, OK?” Lagarde, who served as minister under conservative Presidents Jacques Chirac and Nicolas Sarkozy, said during a press conference Thursday afternoon following the ECB’s decision to keep interest rates at 2.25 percent. The ECB president has issued several messages, not always consistent, on whether she will stay in office until the end of her term. She today repeated that she would not leave the Bank in times of economic turbulence, returning to the same nautical metaphor she used earlier this month and arguing that speculations about her future are “not particularly important.” “When there are clouds on the horizon, the captain stays on the ship. This captain is staying on the ship.” Lagarde warned that “the flaring up of the conflict” in the Middle East could further raise inflation. “The risks to the inflation outlook are to the upside. The energy shock could intensify further and its effects on other prices and wages could be stronger than currently expected,” she said.