ECB's Sleijpen says central banks must be ready to act

Generic readiness language from an ECB governing council member is a staple of official communication and, on its own, has historically carried little signal about the next policy move; it recurs around episodes of market stress, geopolitical escalation, or data surprises as a way of preserving optionality without committing the committee. The distinction that matters is whether 'ready to act' refers to rates, meaning the policy path and the front end, or to market functioning, meaning tools aimed at fragmentation and spreads in the periphery; ECB speakers have used the phrase in both registers, and the surrounding context usually determines which channel re-prices. Sleijpen sits among the more recent additions to the council, and remarks from newer or less established voices tend to move markets only when they echo or sharpen a line already set by the core leadership. The follow-ons are whether other members adopt similar phrasing, whether the comment is tied to a specific development in the Q&A, and how it sits against the prevailing rate path priced into the short end. As a headline without figures or guidance, the content is directional reassurance rather than information.