European Central Bank chief Christine Lagarde has coronavirus

Ms Lagarde says there will be no impact on ECB's operations

Christine Lagarde said her symptoms were mild after she was vaccinated and boosted. AFP

European Central Bank chief Christine Lagarde announced on Thursday she had tested positive for Covid-19.

Ms Lagarde, 66, said her symptoms were "reasonably mild" and that she is vaccinated and boosted.

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The former IMF boss said she would work from home in Frankfurt, Germany, until she recovers but that there would be no impact on the ECB's operations.

The ECB’s Governing Council meets on April 13-14 to set monetary policy for the euro area and Ms Lagarde's attendance is now in doubt.

The bloc is trying to rein in surging inflation which reached a record of 7.5 per cent in March.

This morning I tested positive for COVID-19. I am vaccinated and boosted, and my symptoms are thankfully reasonably mild. I will work from home in Frankfurt until I am fully recovered. There is no impact on the ECB’s operations.

— Christine Lagarde (@Lagarde) April 7, 2022

ECB officials have already warned that the war in Ukraine will affect the economic outlook for the region.

Some have held out the possibility of raising interest rates this year, though they’ve also stressed the need to keep options open and to act on the basis of incoming data.

In December, ECB Vice President Luis de Guindos also contracted the virus days before a policy meeting and joined the concluding press conference remotely at that time. Andrea Enria, the head of the central bank’s supervisory arm, had Covid in January.

Updated: April 07, 2022, 9:50 AM