(Bloomberg) -- The European Central Bank is very likely to start cutting interest rates at its next policy meeting in June, Bank of France Governor Francois Villeroy de Galhau said.

Barring surprise shocks, the ECB remains committed to bringing inflation to its 2% goal by next year from 2.4% currently, he said in an interview on RTL radio on Wednesday. 

“As we have sufficient confidence, we will very probably begin cutting central-bank rates, doubtless at our meeting at the start of June,” Villeroy said.

His comments reflect a consensus, even if some more hawkish ECB policymakers have urged greater caution on cutting rates after a first move in June. Backing such views are a persistence in euro-area salary gains and uncertainty in energy markets caused by the situation in the Middle East. Stronger growth in the euro-zone economy may also make policy easing less urgent.

Other ECB officials on Wednesday also backed a first reduction in rates in June.

“At the ECB’s April meeting, we gave a conditional signal about interest-rate cuts in June,” Finland’s Olli Rehn said in Helsinki. “If the confidence that inflation is approaching its target in a sustainable manner continues to strengthen, the restrictiveness of monetary policy can be reduced.”

Speaking in Tallinn, Estonia’s Madis Muller concurred on June, though urged prudence beyond that.

“I would prefer to remain less specific and repeat the general message that ECB Governing Council members have carried — that it depends on future economic developments and whether we see inflation indicators persistently nearing 2%,” he said.

Villeroy said the economy should pick up more in 2025 as lower borrowing costs drive investment and slower inflation supports consumer spending.

“We expect a recovery more next year, helped by the decline in inflation,” he said. “Between the recession we avoided and the recovery to come, it’s resilience today, which is to say the French economy is relatively robust.” 

--With assistance from Leo Laikola and Ott Tammik.

(Updates with ECB’s Rehn, Muller starting in fifth paragraph.)

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