ECB holds rates steady

The European Central Bank held its key interest rates steady, as expected yesterday, leaving eurozone borrowing costs at historic low levels after cutting rates twice in recent months.

The ECB’s policy-setting governing council voted to leave the rate for its main refinancing operations unchanged at one per cent at its regular monthly meeting here.

Earlier in London, the Bank of England also held its rates steady at a record low of 0.5 per cent and said it would inject another £50 billion (€60 billion) into Britain’s weak economy.

No changes in ECB rates had been expected this week following the recent rate cuts and the unprecedented amounts of liquidity pumped into the banking system to avert a possible credit crunch in the eurozone economy.

Analysts and central bank watchers said the guardian of the euro would want to see how those measures have played out before taking further action, especially with a second huge auction of liquidity scheduled for the end of February and the ECB staff projections for inflation and growth set to be published in March.

Bank president Mario Draghi is scheduled to discuss the reasoning behind the latest decision at the regular monthly news conference.

Since Mr Draghi took office 100 days ago, the central bank has brought eurozone borrowing costs back down to their previous historical low of one per cent.

It has also offered banks in the region an unlimited pool of liquidity by loosening collateral rules, cutting the minimum reserve ratio and launching new three-year loans at super-cheap rates.