Draghi and his ECB colleagues say they'll go slow paring back stimulus

ECB's Peter Praet and Benoit Coeure also warned that the threat of a global trade war is increasing the risk to growth

The European Central Bank’s top officials lined up to express cautious confidence in the euro-area economy after a series of reports pointing to a surprisingly weak start to the year, while reiterating that they’ll move only slowly toward ending stimulus.

President Mario Draghi and three of his most-senior colleagues signaled on Monday that while inflation remains too low and a global trade spat poses a new threat, the upturn is still intact. The comments come just over two weeks before the Governing Council meets to discuss how and when it might end its bond-buying program.

Recent euro-area data have disappointed, with gauges