ECB's Simkus says he cannot exclude action at any meeting, adding that December is a natural time to assess the situation more

The 'cannot exclude action at any meeting' formulation is standard Governing Council boilerplate, used by members across the hawk-dove spectrum to preserve optionality without committing to anything; on its own it has historically moved little. The operative content is the framing of December as a natural assessment point, which fits the established ECB rhythm in which meetings accompanied by fresh staff projections carry the bulk of policy signalling weight, while interim meetings tend to be framed as live but contingent. Simkus sits on the more dovish side of the Council and has prior form in entertaining easing when the data allow, so the remark reads as consistent rather than a shift. The distinction that matters for pricing is whether such comments cluster across the centrist members or remain confined to the dovish wing, since it is the median that sets the path. The follow-ons are whether other officials echo the December framing, and the sensitivity this builds into the inflation and wage prints that land before that meeting. As verbal guidance rather than decision, the signal is directional and the front end typically takes its cue from the data calendar it elevates.