An interview with the Bundesbank's newest board member

Dr. Elena Braun keeps her office on the second floor of the Bundesbank looking like the office of an academic who has recently moved in. There is a small painting she says is from her grandmother, a plant she says is doing better than expected, and — the day we visited — a copy of that morning's Meridian Daily on the desk.

"You cannot fight inflation by ignoring the labour market. And you cannot ignore the labour market for long."

— Dr. Elena Braun

The following interview has been edited for length and clarity.

MD: Let's start with wages.

EB: I would rather start with productivity, but yes — wages are the number I look at first every morning.