The European Central Bank cut interest rates as expected on Thursday and kept the door ajar to more, even as a looming trade war with the United States and plans to boost military spending drive Europe's biggest economic policy upheaval in decades.

The ECB cut rates by a quarter point, aiming to buffer an economy threatened by tariffs and a sudden need to ramp up military spending.

The European Central Bank is cutting interest rates by a quarter percentage point, lowering credit costs for consumers and businesses to support an economy that is struggling to show solid growth.