ECB Rate Cut Could Be On The Horizon

Investors are keeping an eye out for eurozone data this week as speculation that the European Central Bank is planning to cut interest rates and bolster its stimulus efforts grows. The region has recovered from much of the turmoil that the financial crisis brought about, but growth across the continent has been uneven and falling oil prices have further weighed on the region's inflation data.

Now, despite forecasts that the U.S. Federal Reserve will move in the opposite direction before the end of the year, the ECB may loosen its policies to help support the bloc's recovery.

Interest Rates A Concern

On Wednesday, the eurozone released inflation data, which most believe provides the clearest picture of the ECB's intentions. Data out on Tuesday showed weakness in both Germany and Spain, and Wednesday's figures showed that inflation for the bloc as a whole slipped into the negative territory for the first time in six months with a rate of -0.1 percent. ECB officials have said they are confident in the region's strength and that deflationary concerns were dissipating, but the figures out on Wednesday told different story.

Migrant Crisis

Another major concern for the EU has been the migrant crisis, which has brought some 500,000 refugees across the bloc's borders. The result has been an uneven distribution of migrants, sapping the financial resources of some of the bloc's struggling economies.

To deal with this, some EU finance ministers have proposed more relaxed rules governing eurozone nations' budget deficits, but EU officials have been unable to reach an agreement on the matter

Many believe that with the migrant crisis showing no signs of resolution, the ECB will be pushed to intervene further in order to keep the region's economies from buckling under the pressure.