Inflation bears defeated as swaps show faith in Draghi

Bond investors are speculating that euro-region inflation is near its bottom, as they look beyond four straight months of slumping consumer prices with bets that Mario Draghi's stimulus policies will work.

The European Central Bank president's quantitative-easing program has helped drive up inflation prospects from an 11-year low. Only a few months ago, Europe's protracted economic stagnation and a plunge in crude oil had investors pricing in the likelihood of little or no consumer-price gains over the next five years, with some even braced for deflation.

"There seems to be some change in attitude about inflation in Europe," said Francis Diamond, a fixed income strategist at JPMorgan Chase & Co in London. "I see a degree of positivity coming through from our inflation survey. It may not be a sea change shift, but at least it's a start of a more constructive environment for inflation in the euro region."