The European Central Bank kept its deposit rate at 2.25%, pausing after June’s quarter-point increase. Policymakers said the full inflationary effect of the Middle East energy shock had yet to emerge and retained a meeting-by-meeting approach. The pause reflected the difficult balance between above-target inflation and the risk that expensive energy weakens activity, leaving further rate rises possible if price pressures spread. The euro weakened against the dollar after the decision, although oil and wider geopolitical news were also driving currencies.