The European Central Bank kept key interest rates at historical lows, revealing a line to conduct the first extensive review of the bank´s cash operations in 16 years.
The bank’s board of governors, which includes 25 members, announced that the main interest rate should be kept at zero percent, while also maintaining its program to buy new bonds worth 20 billion euros (22.2 billion euros) per month. The bond purchase program was launched on November 1.
It also kept interest on deposits at minus 0.5%, and interest on facilitating marginal lending (the interest rate that banks pay when borrowing from the European Central Bank for one night) at a positive of 0.25%.
The Frankfurt-based bank said it expects the central interest rates of the central bank to remain at current levels or even reduce them until they anticipate a strong improvement. It should be noted that the bank aims to reach inflation rates below 2%.
