The European Central Bank again pushed back the date when it will start to consider raising interest rates, effectively acknowledging that the global slowdown largely started by the U.S.-China trade dispute is undermining the Eurozone economy too.

However, the bank chose not to reintroduce the possibility of another interest rate cut into its forward guidance. That raises the likelihood that the euro’s interest rate differential with the dollar will narrow in the future, given that the Federal Reserve appears to be pivoting to a looser policy stance.ECB Interest Rate Decision

In a statement, the ECB said that “the Governing Council expects the key ECB interest rates to remain at their present levels at least through the first half of 2020.”

It’s the second straight meeting that the ECB has extended the timeframe for its first hike since 2011. At its last meeting, it had pushed out the timing from September to the end of 2019. The new stance means that whoever replaces Mario Draghi as president of the ECB in November will find it near impossible to move the bank’s interest rates for at least eight months.