The European Central Bank expectedly kept the base interest rate on loans at zero, the deposit rate – at minus 0.5%. The rate on margin loans is left at 0.25%. The regulator also announced a reduction in asset repurchase under the Asset Purchase Program (APP) to 30 billion euros in May from 40 billion euros in April. In June, asset repurchase will decrease to 20 billion euros. At the same time, the ECB noted that the adjustment of asset repurchases within the APP in the third quarter will depend on statistical data. The Governing Council intends to keep rates at current levels until inflation in the euro area reaches 2% and is steadily fixed at this level. The Board of Governors also intends to continue reinvesting proceeds from the repayment of securities purchased under the Pandemic Emergency Purchase Program (PEPP) at least until the end of 2024. It is worth noting that the repurchase of securities under PEPP was completed in March of this year. After the ECB meeting, the euro/dollar exchange rate dropped from $1.0923 to $1.0758. The current quote of the EUR/USD pair is $1.0825.
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