© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Workers are seen at the construction site of the Austerlitz basin, a water storage reservoir for wastewater and rainwater, build to improve the sanitary quality of the water in the Seine River, in Paris, France, May 25, 2023. REUTERS/Benoit Te

MARRAKECH (Reuters) – The euro zone labour market shows no sign of softening, despite a near recessionary environment and a record string of interest rate hikes, European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde said on Saturday.

“The labor market still shows no real sign of weakening,” Lagarde told a conference. “The numbers we see both in terms of actual participation in the unemployment and unemployment in nominal numbers are quite striking.”

The ECB has been raising rates to dampen demand and persistently low unemployment is a key reason why some policymakers worry that high inflation could get stuck above target as workers enjoy the some of the best wage growth in years.