The European Central Bank has announced its biggest-ever interest rates rise in the battle to beat inflation.
And ECB president Christine Lagarde vowed to keep hiking to stop prices spiralling out of control.
Policymakers raised all three of the key interest rates at the bank by 0.75% yesterday - the biggest increase since the euro's launch in 1999.
Ms Lagarde warned that inflation, which stood at 9.1% in August, was "far too high" and likely to remain above the bank's 2% target for an "extended period" of at least two years.
While she insisted that policymakers would take decisions meeting by meeting, the president suggested that rates would need to keep rising for "several meetings'' to bring inflation back in check.
Speaking to reporters, she said: "As we are so far away from the rate that will help us return inflation to 2%, our hikes have to be not only timely but of a magnitude that brings us closer and more quickly towards our target."
Price rises are expected to average 8.1% this year and 5.5%in 2023, only falling back close to the ECB's 2% target in 2024.
Substantial slowdown
The ECB also warned of a "substantial slowdown in euro area economic growth" as it cut its growth forecast to 0.9% in 2023, from a previous prediction of 2.1%.
However, economists said they were surprised that the ECB believed the bloc would avoid recession.
Ms Lagarde did say a downside scenario where Russia completely cut off gas supplies, forcing countries to ration energy, would probably trigger a period of economic decline next year.
But most economists expect the single currency bloc to fall into recession later this year.
Holger Schmieding, an economist at Berenberg bank, told the Telegraph: "It seems likely that, once the ECB realises the depth of the recession that we expect to unfold, it will put rate hikes on hold at some time in early 2023."