ECB keeps rates at 1%

by Richard Kilner

Story link: ECB keeps rates at 1%

The Governing Council of the European Central Bank (ECB) has decided to retain the eurozone’s record low interest rate of 1%.

The decision, which was widely expected, comes as the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee made a similar choice in keeping the United Kingdom’s interest rate at 0.5%.

The eurozone has had the 1% rate since May last year, and the UK’s rate has been unchanged for more than 12 months.

Europe generally is seeing a sluggish return to growth after the deep and prolonged recession, with recovery so gradual as to necessitate continued monetary stimulus.

However, the UK has halted its unprecedented £200bn quantitative easing asset purchase scheme, effectively printing money to try and boost the economy.