FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) - With European leaders under pressure from sluggish growth, policy-makers at the continent's central bank gather Thursday to decide whether to give them a break with another interest rate reduction. With inflation falling markedly, the ECB is running out of reasons to stick to a cautious approach that has seen it ease rates only three times this year. The U.S. Federal Reserve has made nine reductions to stimulate the economy there. Economists cast a worried eye also on the euro, which has slipped back below dlrs 0.90 on concern at the region's stagnant economy. But European Central Bank President Wim Duisenberg last week talked leaders including Germany's Gerhard Schroeder and Jacques Chirac of France into watering down a call for the bank to move swiftly. "If we do have room to maneuver, there is very little," he said after the bank's last meeting on Oct. 11 which left its benchmark rate unchanged at 3.75 percent. The bank had dropped the rate by a half percentage point Sept. 17 in tandem with the Fed to restore confidence badly shaken by the terror attacks in the United States. Economists are evenly divided on what the bank will do Thursday. A survey of 26 economists by Dow Jones Newswires showed that 12 predicted a cut now, while two more said the chances were 50-50. Interest rate cuts stimulate the economy by making it easier for businesses to borrow and expand. Increased demand for European goods also can strengthen the euro. But lower rates can also fuel inflation - enemy number one at the ECB. Annual inflation in the 12 countries using the euro common currency fell to 2.5 percent in September from 2.7 percent. Duisenberg says it should fall below the 2 percent ceiling targeted by the ECB early next year. EU leaders dropped a call for "further decisive action" after meeting with Duisenberg in Belgium on Friday. Their final statement said only that "a further improvement in inflation prospects would provide room for maneuver for monetary policy." Germany last week provided two further pieces of depressing economic news that helped stimulate calls for rate cuts. Finance minister Hans Eichel said Europe's biggest economy would expand by only 0.75 percent this year, and rebound only slightly in 2002. Meanwhile, a closely watched survey showed business sentiment in September suffering its biggest drop in 28 years.