According to a source with knowledge of the matter, the European Central Bank is worried that it will be difficult to convey its intentions accurately at its July meeting.

　　European Central Bank officials are now concerned about how exactly to communicate the governing council's intentions after raising interest rates in July, according to people familiar with the matter. With the September rate decision pending, governors need to avoid sending a strong signal that they will continue to raise rates or pause them.

　　The concerns highlight the challenges monetary authorities face in ending this tightening cycle, as there is little consensus within the common currency union of 20 independent sovereign states at a time when policy interest rates have risen to their highest level since 2001 and core inflation remains high.

　　Some members worry about runaway inflation, while an almost equal number worry about higher debt service costs and slowing economies as a result of higher interest rates. Others are caught in a dilemma.

　　And the positions of some members are not fixed. Earlier in the day, for example, longtime hawkish Dutch central bank President Klaas Kernot said that a rate hike after July was at best possible, but by no means certain.