By CentralBankNews.info
The European Central Bank (ECB) left its key interest rates steady, as widely expected, and confirmed its recent guidance that it expects to maintain these rates “at least through the summer of 2019, and in any case for as long as necessary” to ensure inflation returns to its target of below, but close to 2.0 percent.
The ECB, the central bank for the 19 European countries that use the euro currency, also repeated that it would continue to reinvest the funds it receives from bonds that mature “for an extended period of time past the date when it starts raising the key ECB interest rates, and in any case for as long as necessary to maintain favorable liquidity conditions and an ample degree of monetary accommodation.”
The European Central Bank released the following statement ahead of ECB President Mario Draghi’s press conference:
“At today’s meeting the Governing Council of the European Central Bank (ECB) decided that the interest rate on the main refinancing operations and the interest rates on the marginal lending facility and the deposit facility will remain unchanged at 0.00%, 0.25% and -0.40% respectively. The Governing Council expects the key ECB interest rates to remain at their present levels at least through the summer of 2019, and in any case for as long as necessary to ensure the continued sustained convergence of inflation to levels that are below, but close to, 2% over the medium term.