European Central Bank chief Christine Lagarde to step down

Speculation had been growing that Lagarde would leave the bank to lead the World Economic Forum. The European Central Bank announced on Wednesday that President Christine Lagarde will step down from the job in February, eight months before her tenure was set to end, formalizing a move that had been rumored since the beginning of this year. The decision, which Lagarde had already alluded to earlier this year, sets up a leadership contest at the bank just as Europe faces major inflationary pressures, largely sparked by the war in Iran. The ECB is expected to hold interest rates steady today, though a rate hike is expected as early as December. Lagarde is widely rumored to leave the bank to lead the World Economic Forum — Reuters reported that she could be officially confirmed as early as next month — and has batted away suggestions that she could run for the French presidency. The bank itself, meanwhile, faces potential pressure from a continent-wide surge in far-right parties: European officials are widely reported to want to appoint her successor and fill other key vacancies before France’s presidential election in April next year, a vote the far-right is expected to win.