LONDON, Feb 22 Reuters Deutsche Bank has lifted its forecast for where the European Central Bank39;s key rate will rise to in this tightening cycle to 3.75 from 3.25, the German bank said in a note on Wednesday.

Deutsche economists now expect the ECB to raise interest rates by 50 basis points bps at its March and May meetings, followed by a final hike of 25bp in June. They had previously expected a 50 bps hike in March and a final 25 bps rise in May.

A more resilient economy and jobs market alongside hawkish central bank rhetoric was behind the forecast change, the note said.

The ECB hike rates by 50 bps to 2.5 earlier this month.

Reporting by Dhara Ranasinghe; Editing by Amanda Cooper