Category: ECB Interest Rates
The analysis published under this category are as follows.
Thursday, June 07, 2018
Judgment Day for the ECB / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Arkadiusz_Sieron
Will the ECB Withstand Pressure?
Next week, the ECB will hold its monetary policy meeting. The bank was expected to start winding down its stimulus program at the end of 2018. However, Italian turmoil led some analysts to think that the ECB will remain cautious. Will the ECB withstand the pressure or funk? And what does it all mean for the gold market?
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Friday, September 09, 2016
The ECB’s Private Deals Are Distorting the European Markets / Stock-Markets / ECB Interest Rates
By: John_Mauldin
ECB President Mario Draghi famously pledged to do “whatever it takes” to restore eurozone growth. His attempts to fulfill that promise have led to NIRP and other bizarre policies like the central bank’s massive asset purchases.
Whether the ECB’s interventions are helping the eurozone economy is not yet clear. But they are certainly having consequences. One is the appearance, if not the reality, of central bank interference and favoritism.
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Friday, March 11, 2016
Mario Draghi Got Lost In A Rabbit Hole / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Raul_I_Meijer
I’ll try and keep this gracefully short: Mario Draghi ‘unleashed’ a bazooka full of desperate tools on the financial markets yesterday and they blew up in his face faster than you could say blowback or backdraft (and that’s just the start of the alphabet). This must and will mean that Draghi’s stint as ECB head is for all intents and purposes done. But…
Friday, December 04, 2015
Does Draghi's Coup Secure Yellen's Interest Rate Liftoff? / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Ashraf_Laidi
To some, the ECB has underdelivered today by not only cutting rates by a smaller than expected 0.10 bp in the deposit rate to -0.3% from -0.2% (vs exp -0.4%) but also disappointed most market players by only extending the duration of QE to an additional 6 months and not adding to the monthly $60 bn QE. The ECB's decision to opt for QE extension rather than QE expansion reflects the broad signs of improvement in German growth business surveys. Germany's IFO and various Eurozone PMIs and confidence surveys have hit 17 to 52-month highs.
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Friday, December 04, 2015
U.S. Dollar and Bonds Sink as ECB Cuts Rates to -0.3%, Pledging More QE Until March 2017 / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Mike_Shedlock
ECB president Mario Draghi's announcement today regarding more QE fell far short of the sky-high expectations of market participants.
Friday, October 23, 2015
ECB Putting Federal Reserve in a Bad Spot / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: EconMatters
ECB Policy Press Conference
Thursday, September 03, 2015
ECB Preempts Fed Inaction, PBOC Action / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Ashraf_Laidi
The ECB succeeded in weakening the euro and bund yields with an aggressive downgrade of 2015-2017 forecasts for GDP and CPI, while announcing an increase in the issue share limit of bonds included in QE purchases to 33% from 25%. The increased limit means the ECB can buy a higher share of an individual nation's bond issue, giving it more freedom of concentration in particular issues.
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Thursday, May 28, 2015
The ECB and the Negative-Interest-Rate Game / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Frank_Hollenbeck
The ECB is now two months into its bond buying binge but the European Central Bank (ECB) never clearly explained the goal and purpose of its own version of quantitative easing. The deflation bogeyman was never a serious threat, nor was it based on any solid theoretical foundation.
A possible justification may have been to make the 1 percent much wealthier so that their extravagant lifestyles trickled benefits down to the average working stiff. Another possible reason may have been to lower the value of the euro to benefit exporters at the expense of the rest of European consumers, the middle class, and the poor. This would be a violation of the unwritten rule that monetary policy should not be targeting the value of the currency directly.
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Sunday, May 24, 2015
Mario Draghi’s Slippery Downward Slope / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Raul_I_Meijer
Mario Draghi made another huge faux pas Thursday, but it looks like the entire world press has become immune to them, because it happens all the time, because they don’t realize what it means, and because they have a message if not a mission to sell. But still, none of these things makes it alright. Nor does Draghi’s denying it was a faux pas to begin with.
And while that’s very worrisome, ‘the public’ appear to be as numbed and dumbed down to this as the media themselves are -largely due to ’cause and effect’, no doubt-. We saw an account of a North Korean defector yesterday lamenting that her country doesn’t have a functioning press, and we thought: get in line.
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Monday, March 23, 2015
The Negative Interest Rates in Europe / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Arkadiusz_Sieron
We wrote in one of our daily articles that Sweden had cut its main interest rate into negative territory (-0.10 percent). That way the Riksbank followed other European central banks. Currently, except Sweden, the negative interest rates are set by the Central Bank of Denmark, the European Central Bank and the Swiss National Bank. What does such a historically unusual monetary policy mean for the financial markets?
Sunday, January 25, 2015
The European Central Bank Commits Monetary Suicide / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Jeff_Berwick
Yesterday the European Central Bank (ECB) announced an expanded 1.1 trillion euro (US$1.3 trillion) asset purchase program to start in March 2015 and continue through September 2016 (19 months) that will include the purchases of sovereign (national government) debt. It plans to purchase roughly 60 billion euros ($68 billion) worth of securities monthly, up from about 13 billion, with most of the additional purchases to be allocated to sovereign (national government) debt with a quarter expected to end up in scarce German bunds. The purchases will be restricted to investment grade issues, which would mean no purchases at all if the condition were applied diligently, and will include non investment grade issues like Greek bonds if they have an ongoing budget/spending agreement with the ECB-IMF in place.
Thursday, September 04, 2014
ECB Meets To Tackle Deflation While Ignoring Shrinkflation / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: GoldCore
ECB Meets in Frankfurt
As the Governing Council of the European Central Bank (ECB) convenes today in Frankfurt for its monthly policy meeting, markets are focusing on how the ECB will signal the initiation of its quantitative easing (QE) programme which is aimed at countering deflationary forces in the Eurozone.
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Sunday, August 17, 2014
A New Interest Rates Record Is Set... And It Is Foreboding / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: DailyWealth
Dr. Steve Sjuggerud writes: A new record was set in Germany yesterday...
The interest rate on a 10-year government bond in Germany fell below 1%.
This number is shocking... Interest rates have never been this low in German history.
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Thursday, August 14, 2014
Government Spending and Negative Interest Rates / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: MISES
Dickson Buchanan writes: In June, the European Central Bank (ECB) made a historic and downright diabolical announcement. They decided to inaugurate negative interest rates for overnight deposits. Here are the details from the official transcript:
Read full article... Read full article...The rate on the deposit facility was lowered by 10 basis points to -0.10 percent. These changes will come into effect on 11 June 2014. The negative rate will also apply to reserve holdings in excess of the minimum reserve requirements and certain other deposits held with the Eurosystem.
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Europe’s Mario Draghi Now Starring in Bernanke’s Show / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: MISES
Brendan Brown writes: Just as Professor Bernanke exits center stage at the end of Act I of the monetary comedy he created, the scene shifts to Frankfurt. The star of Act II is European Central Bank (ECB) chief Mario Draghi. As we pick up the story, Mr. Draghi has been launching a defense against a phantom threat of deflation.
Thursday, June 19, 2014
The Euro Goes Negative - Sovereign Debt Bubble Is a Bigger Issue / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Peter_Schiff
Dickson Buchanan writes: The European Central Bank's (ECB) decision to charge a negative interest on overnight deposits is not going to lead to a higher targeted inflation rate, despite ECB President Mario Draghi's insistence that it will. Like all cases of central planning, this decision will have unintended and costly consequences - some of which are already starting to play out. In this particular case, instead of stimulating business lending or higher prices, the decision will only stimulate the increased buying of insolvent government debt - leading us all one step closer to the economy's eventual unravelling.
Thursday, June 19, 2014
Draghi Hits Savers To Salvage Faux Economic Recovery / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: John_Browne
On June 5th, Mario Draghi, President of the European Central Bank (ECB), announced a package of measures, including a policy of negative interest rates, aimed at encouraging or even forcing Eurozone banks to increase their lending to businesses.Although previously imposed by Swiss banks on their depositors, this will be the first time that a central bank has charged negative interest rates. The package also contained a reduction in Base Rate, a further major new Long Term Refinancing Operation (LTRO), a reaffirmation of 'Forward Guidance' to indicate low interest rates for the foreseeable future, and hints that the ECB might in future engage in Bernanke-style Quantitative Easing (QE).
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Wednesday, June 11, 2014
The European Central Bank’s House of Cards / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Frank_Hollenbeck
The European Central Bank (ECB) recently imposed negative deposit rates and is preparing a form of quantitative easing (QE) to purchase asset backed securities, corporate bonds or possibly bailout bonds. This policy may seem surprising. Why would the ECB want to try to force banks into making bad loans, or consider implementing a policy of quantitative easing that has clearly been a total failure (with obvious unintended consequences) in both the USA and Japan? The answer lies elsewhere. Under the guise of avoiding deflation or “low-flation,” the ECB is, in reality, panicking and trying to save itself from the executioner’s axe. Of course, the European banking sector and its bought-and-paid-for journalists unanimously support this prospect of continued theft through debasement. They are giddy at the prospects of higher asset prices and higher banker incomes, unjustified by fundamentals, and the implied massive transfer of income and wealth from the have-nots to the haves.
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Europe's Unprecedented Rate-Slashing Gives Us a Classic Profit Play / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Money_Morning
Peter Krauth writes: European Central Bank President Mario Draghi is desperate.
The European Union has been plagued with years of falling inflation and stubbornly high unemployment.
And now its central bank is attempting to employ "unconventional" policies to kick-start the economy.
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Tuesday, June 10, 2014
European Central Bank Goes Sub Zero / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Mike_Whitney
On Thursday, European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi dropped rates on overnight deposits to minus 0.1% thereby charging commercial banks to keep their money at the ECB. The move, which was applauded by the media as a “historic measure to fight deflation”, is nothing of the kind. Negative rates have been used in both Sweden and Denmark in recent years, but to little effect. The policy will not “get the banks lending again” as the ECB suggests, nor will it ease the high unemployment and slow growth that have plagued the Eurozone for the last six years. In truth, the rate change will have no impact at all. It’s merely public relations stunt designed to create the impression that the ECB is aggressively addressing the crisis for which it is largely responsible. Here’s how the World Socialist Web Site summed it up:
Monday, June 09, 2014
Germany Says Draghi Is A New Bismark And Dangerous / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Andrew_McKillop
Mario Draghi's Historic Decision
By pushing down the ECB's overnight rate on forced deposits to it, from the Eurozone's private banks to minus 0.1% per year, and holding the ECB's key lending rate to banks and financial establishments in the Eurozone at 0.15% per year, Draghi made a so-called historic decision. Announcing the moves last week, Draghi used several powerful images and allusions. For example Japan's lost decade, but he means 3 lost decades – and staying with Japan, he could have mentioned that BOJ lending rates in Japan have been held below 2% for 30 years. Did that stimulate the Japanese economy?
Sunday, June 08, 2014
European Central Bank Cuts Interest Rate Below Zero / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Global_Research
Stefan Steinberg writes: The European Central Bank (ECB) slashed one of its interest rates to negative territory and unveiled a €400bn loan package for Europe’s banks in response to the ongoing economic slump and the threat of deflation.
At its meeting in Frankfurt Thursday, the central bank cut its main lending rate to 0.15 percent from its current historic low of 0.25 percent, and its overnight deposit rate from zero to minus 0.10 percent, becoming the largest central bank to lower rates to below zero.
Sunday, June 08, 2014
ECB Negative Interest Rate Is A Dud, Bank Deposits Are Long Gone / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Raul_I_Meijer
Much ado about nothing. That about sums up the real story behind the heated headlines on the “historic” decision by the ECB to lower its deposit rate into negative territory, from 0% to -0.1%. Because without any actual deposits, the move is empty, meaningless, showmanship, sleight of hand. There was a time when it made sense for banks to park reserves at the central bank, but that time is long gone, since banks don’t have to be afraid of each other’s hidden debts anymore. Not because those debts have disappeared , but because governments and central banks are now on the hook for them.
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Friday, June 06, 2014
ECB Pulls Out Pea Shooter, Fires, Misses Target / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Mike_Shedlock
In a widely expected move this morning, ECB president Mario Draghi announced negative interest rates, the first-ever move for a major central bank.
The deposit rate in Europe is now negative 0.10%. The ECB also lowered the benchmark rate from 0.25% to 0.15%.
In a display of puffery, Draghi announced “we aren’t finished here”.
Friday, June 06, 2014
Euro-zone Negative Interest Rates, Ready to Pay the Bank to Hold Your Money? / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Chris_Vermeulen
The six members of the European Central Bank (ECB) Executive Board and the 16 governors of the euro area central banks vote on where to set the rate. We watch interest rate changes closely as short term interest rates are the primary factor in currency valuation.
Friday, June 06, 2014
Currency Wars - When Interest Rates Go Negative / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: John_Rubino
Yesterday morning the European Central Bank tried something different. As Bloomberg reported:
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Friday, June 06, 2014
ECB Cuts Base Interest Rate. So What? / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Jonathan_Davis
I won’t bore you with the minutiae just a couple of details:
The ECB has cut the Base Rate by the staggering amount of, er, 0.1% to 0.15%.
Also, banks depositing funds at their Central Bank (the ECB) will be charged 0.1% for the privilege.
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Thursday, August 02, 2012
Pimco Bill Gross - Draghi Disappoints with Lack of ECB Policy Moves / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Bloomberg
Bill Gross, co-CIO of PIMCO, appeared on Bloomberg TV’s “In the Loop” with Betty Liu and said that Mario Draghi disappointed investors by not offering concrete policy steps: "we were hoping for, at least temporarily, some type of specific effort on the part of the central banks."
Gross also responded to Jeremy Siegel's comments on Bloomberg TV earlier today that Gross doesn't know economics by suggesting that he "hasn't even read my piece, let alone understood it." Gross said that Siegel “belongs back in his Ivory tower.”
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Friday, November 11, 2011
Charting Euro Macro, Yields and LIBOR Interest Rate Spreads / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Ashraf_Laidi
Wednesday's 2% decline in EURUSD was the only 3rd of such magnitude over the past 3 years. There have been five of + or 2% in the last 3 years, 2 of which occurred last month; (-2% Oct 31 after referendum announcement and +2% on Oct 27 after the EFSF/Troika/recap deal). Yesterdays 13% surge in EURUSD 1-month volatility typified the broadening rise in the currency's volatility as of late.
Friday, May 06, 2011
ECB Interest Rates, Nothing New, No Problems / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Axel_Merk
After raising interest rates by 0.25% a month ago, the European Central Bank (ECB) left interest rates unchanged at today's meeting of its Governing Council. The press conference that followed was held in Helsinki; Finland just elected a new government that may block the aid package put together for Portugal. Adjusting to the Nordic spirit of not wasting time with small talk, ECB head Trichet was very much to the point with his answers:
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Thursday, April 07, 2011
ECB Takes Away Low Interest Rate Punch Bowl / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Axel_Merk
Today, the European Central Bank (ECB) raised its main refinancing rate by 0.25% to 1.25%.
ECB President Trichet has long argued that its monetary policy is independent of the "extraordinary measures" put in place to support the financial system. However, it was only earlier this year that the market took Trichet's suggestions that he may raise rates seriously, even as the sovereign debt crisis remains unresolved.
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Friday, March 04, 2011
ECB President Trichet’s Remarks Beg Questions on Eurozone Interest Rates / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Asha_Bangalore
President Trichet of European Central Bank (ECB) noted at this morning's press conference that "strong vigilance is warranted with a view to containing upside risks to price stability." This statement implies that the ECB is considering tightening monetary policy in the very near term. President Trichet's hawkish stance is based on the region's inflation rate of 2.3% in January and inflation excluding food and energy was 1.2%. The all-items inflation reading exceeds the ECB's target of 2.0% and reflects a jump in energy prices. So, at the top of Trichet's to-do list is to prepare markets for a higher policy rate from the current level of 1.0%.
Monday, February 28, 2011
German Economic Growth Miracle is Not Miraculous Enough for an ECB Rate Hike / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: ECR_Research
The case for an interest rate increase by the ECB is building. Inflation in the euro zone is creeping up, and tensions in the Middle East are adding fuel to the ‘inflation fire’ by sending oil prices higher. The biggest worry of the ECB is that, although the inflationary effects of higher oil prices are mostly temporary, it will lead to a positive wage-price spiral in Europe’s biggest economy: Germany.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Trichet and the ECB, Finalizing a Legacy / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: David_Urban
On October 31, 2011 the tenure of ECB President Trichet will come do an end. In the coming months we will likely hear an increasing drumbeat of noise concerning who will replace Trichet and what policies the new leader of the ECB will embrace. In the meantime, it is likely that Trichet will use the remaining months to tie up loose ends regarding the PIIGS and set a potential course for his successor.
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Monday, January 17, 2011
Sterling and European short rates: which is the better bear market? / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Seven_Days_Ahead
Inflation is increasingly becoming an issue for traders in many markets. As economic recovery slowly strengthens, fears of deflation, even in the US have given way to worries that inflation may emerge as the next big challenge after a prolonged period of exceptionally low interest rates in the major developed economies.
Thursday, March 04, 2010
ECB - Greece is Convincing / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Axel_Merk
At its monthly press conference, European Central Bank (ECB) President Trichet announced a further gradual reduction of emergency lending facilities. Focus of the meeting was the fiscal austerity package passed by Greece's parliament the previous day. Unlike previous commentaries, Trichet was full of praise for Greece, saying it was "extremely important that the decisions taken by Greece could be convincing because they would credibilize [sic] the adjustment program that was absolutely necessary."
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Monday, February 08, 2010
ECB in a Fix, Trichet is as Chill as Ever! / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Vishal_Damor
Trichet is one of the stalwarts of the economic crisis of 2008. He steered the EU economy through one of the most difficult eras after its creation and yet has maintained one of the cleanest balance sheet (Deficit 6% of GDP: one can almost mistake it for China or India Balance sheet).
Thursday, December 03, 2009
ECB, The Reluctant Interest Rate Hawk? / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Axel_Merk
The European Central Bank (ECB) kept its main refinancing rate unchanged at 1%, but announced that it will phase out its six-month and one-year refinancing facilities and move to an index-based interest rate rather than a fixed or auction based rate for future refinancing operations.
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Friday, February 08, 2008
ECB Smoke and Mirrors to Mask Explosive Money Supply Growth Fueling Inflation / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Gary_Dorsch
European Central Bank chief, Jean "Tricky" Trichet, likes to operate behind a veil of "Smoke and Mirrors" in managing the Euro zone's monetary policy, which is designed to fool most people, most of the time. Most importantly, "Tricky" Trichet, has fueled the fastest growth in the Euro M3 money supply in history, running at three times the rate of the ECB's original guidelines, deemed consistent with low inflation.
So it shouldn't have been a surprise to learn that inflation in the Euro zone hit an all-time high of 3.2% in January, and far above the ECB's inflation target of 2 percent. Euro zone producer price inflation picked up to an annual 4.3% in December, led by higher food and energy costs. Trichet and his band of propaganda artists have given plenty of lip service to fighting inflation in recent months, but behind the veil of "Smoke and Mirrors", haven't lifted a finger to put empty words into action.
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Thursday, February 07, 2008
European Central Bank (ECB) Monetary Policy Interest Rate Decision Statement / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: ECB
Ladies and gentlemen, the Vice-President and I are very pleased to welcome you to our press conference. Let me report on the outcome of our meeting, which was also attended by Commissioner Almunia.
On the basis of our regular economic and monetary analyses, we decided at today's meeting to leave the key ECB interest rates unchanged. This decision reflects our assessment that risks to price stability over the medium term are on the upside, in a context of very vigorous money and credit growth. The current short-term upward pressure on inflation must not spill over to the medium term. The firm anchoring of inflation expectations over the medium and long term is of the highest priority to the Governing Council, reflecting its mandate.
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Sunday, July 08, 2007
Interest Rate Rises - Bank of England Today, European Central Bank in September? / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Paul_L_Kasriel
As widely expected, the Bank of England (BOE) raised its policy rate by 25 basis points to 5.75% this week. This represents a cumulative increase of 125 basis points in a year's time. Although the European Central Bank (ECB) held its policy rate steady at 4.00%, its president, Claude Trichet, hinted that there would be more rate increases in the not-too-distant future.Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
The ECB Takes Another Step Toward Reining In Global Liquidity / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Paul_L_Kasriel
Today the European Central Bank (ECB) raised its policy interest rate 25 basis points to a level of 4.0%. Today's rate hike brings the cumulative increase to an even 200 basis points since the ECB started hiking its policy rate in December 2005. Comments by ECB President Trichet suggest that the ECB is not yet finished raising its policy interest rate.Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
ECB Raises European Interest Rates to 4% / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Nadeem_Walayat
As widely expected the European Central Bank today raised its key benchmark rate by 0.25% to 4% on the back of a strengthening Euro zone economy. This marks the eighth rise since December 2005.Read full article... Read full article...