Pantheon Macro: Euro Zone’s Employment Rate Remains Elevated, Potential Interest Rate Hike by European Central Bank in the Upcoming Month

Melanie Debono, an economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said in a note that today’s labor market data bolstered the strength of ECB hawks.

The unemployment rate in the euro zone hit a record low in June at 6.4%, in line with last month’s revised data and below market expectations.

Without revisions, the data point to another rate hike from the ECB next month as it struggles to bring down core inflation amid persistently high wages, Debono said.