20/12/2010 | World

ECB's Trichet: Ireland must stick to bailout plan

European Central Bank head Jean-Claude Trichet said euro zone countries must do more individually and collectively to combat the bloc's debt crisis, and Ireland must stick "rigorously" to its bailout plan.

07/04/2011 | World

ECB raises interest rates to 1.25%

The European Central Bank raised interest rates by 25 basis points to 1.25 percent, announcing its first hike since July 2008 to counter firming inflation pressures in the 17-countryeuro zone.

02/05/2011 | World

ECB's Trichet: financial crisis is not over

The financial crisis is not over and the economic environment remains demanding, European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said. Trichet added that the ECB would continue to separate its non-standard policy measures - liquidity injections and bond purchases - from its standard measures, such as its interest rates.

05/05/2011 | World

ECB keeps rates unchanged at 1.25%

The European Central Bank kept euro zone interest rates on hold as expected leaving markets focused on whether Jean-Claude Trichet will flag a June hike by declaring the bank is in a state of "strong vigilance."

04/08/2011 | World

ECB keeps rates at 1.5% as expected

"I would expect Trichet to try to raise the probability that they may intervene (in bond markets) but no more than that," said Deutsche Bank economist Gilles Moec.

04/08/2011 | World

European Union calls for re-assessment of bailout funds

Today, the European Commission called for a re-assessment of all elements of the euro zone's current and future bailout funds, including size, to persuade markets the euro zone can respond to the debt crisis.

05/08/2011 | World

US, European leaders hold crisis talks

US President Barack Obama, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy agreed to consider further steps to pressure Syrian President Bashar al-Assad over his harsh crackdown on protests, the White House said.

08/08/2011 | World

European Central Bank backs Italy, Spain in bid to halt euro crisis

The European Central Bank intervened dramatically in bond markets today, backing up a verbal pledge to support Spain and Italy with action in an attempt to avert a financial meltdown in the euro zone.

01/09/2011 | World

US has 'enormous' debt problem: ECB's Stark

A debt crisis is still gripping the developed world, European Central Bank policymaker Juergen Stark said, adding there was no alternative but for countries to take painful steps to consolidate their public finances.

05/09/2011 | World

ECB tells EU to step up reforms, says bond-buying temporary

The current and incoming head of the European Central Bank demanded that European governments quickly implement a strengthening of a regional bailout fund and press ahead with wider reforms.

08/09/2011 | World

ECB holds rates as recession fears mount

The European Central Bank held interest rates at 1.5 percent today and is likely to indicate that a policy tightening cycle it began in April is on hold in the face of growing evidence the euro zone's economic recovery is losing momentum.

13/09/2011 | World

Italy austerity nears approval as pressure mounts

Italy's lower house of parliament is expected to approve the centre-right government's much revised austerity plan on Wednesday as Rome struggles to stem a financial market crisis now threatening the whole euro zone.

14/09/2011 | World

Italy parliament gives final approval to austerity plan

The Italian parliament gave final approval to a much-altered austerity plan aimed at stemming a debt crisis engulfing the euro zone's third largest economy.

15/09/2011 | World

Major central banks expand dollar operations

Major central banks around the world will cooperate to offer three-month US dollar loans to commercial banks in order to prevent money markets from freezing up because of Europe's sovereign debt crisis.

19/09/2011 | World

Greece inches closer to deal on aid

Greece hopes to clinch a deal with its lenders on Tuesday for continued aid funding, an official said, after it pledged to take on as much austerity as needed to avoid a default that could trigger deeper turmoil on already shaky global markets.

28/09/2011 | World

EU's Barroso calls on ECB to do whatever it takes in crisis

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso urged the European Central Bank to do everything in its power to maintain financial stability in the euro zone, saying the EU faced the biggest challenge in its 50-year history.

06/10/2011 | World

ECB holds rates, new liquidity help eyed

The European Central Bank kept interest rates on hold today as broadly expected and is expected to launch a set of fresh liquidity measures to help banks to weather the euro zone's worsening debt storm.

06/10/2011 | World

Trichet sees intensified downside risks to growth

Downside risks to economic growth in the euro zone have intensified, European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said today, taking a slightly more gloomy view than a month ago.

11/10/2011 | World

Trichet warns euro zone's sovereign debt crisis has become systemic

European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet issued the dramatic warning as chairman of the European Systemic Risk Board, created to avoid a repeat of the 2008 financial crisis, amid growing fears that Greece will default on its massive debt.

14/10/2011 | World

US rejects plan to strengthen IMF in euro zone crisis

Proposals to double the size of the IMF as part of a broader international response to Europe's debt crisis immediately ran into resistance from the United States and others, burying the idea for now and firmly putting the onus back on Europe.

25/10/2011 | World

ECB row, Italy flare on eve of euro rescue summit

A flare-up over the European Central Bank and political turmoil in Italy kept the euro zone on edge on the eve of a summit meant to confront the currency bloc's worsening sovereign debt crisis.

26/10/2011 | World

Eurozone aims to ramp up rescue fund, details deferred

Euro zone leaders intend to multiply the capacity of their rescue fund around fourfold to one trillion euros but details of how they plan to draw a line under Europe's worsening debt crisis will not be nailed until next month, sources said.

03/11/2011 | World

ECB cuts rates to 1.25% in surprise move

The European Central Bank cut its main interest rate by 25 basis points to 1.25 percent as the euro zone's worsening debt crisis outweighed the concern over persistently high inflation.

16/11/2011 | World

European Central Bank steps in to counter bond rout

The European Central Bank stepped in to stem an accelerating sell-off of euro zone government bonds today, traders said, after the United States called for more decisive action to halt a spreading sovereign debt crisis.

16/11/2011 | World

France, Germany clash over ECB crisis role

France and Germany, Europe's two central powers, clashed over whether the European Central Bank should intervene more forcefully to halt the euro zone's accelerating debt crisis after modest bond purchases failed to calm markets.

17/11/2011 | World

Greek protests as France, Spain face squeeze

More than 30,000 Greeks took to the streets of Athens in a protest rally that marked the first public test for a new national unity government that must impose painful spending cuts and tax rises if the country is to escape bankruptcy.

23/11/2011 | World

Germany and France clash again over ECB role in euro crisis

Germany and France clashed today over whether the ECB should take bolder steps to stem the euro zone debt crisis, with Chancellor Angela Merkel issuing one of her starkest warnings yet against fiddling with the central bank's strict inflation-fighting mandate.

24/11/2011 | World

Sarkozy, Merkel agree to stop sniping on ECB crisis

France and Germany agreed today to stop arguing in public over whether the European Central Bank should do more to rescue the euro zone from a deepening sovereign debt crisis.

30/11/2011 | World

Italy PM says to meet budget goal, not seeking IMF aid

Prime Minister Mario Monti pledged measures to ensure that Italy meets its goal of balancing the budget even if economic prospects worsen, and said no approach for help had been made to the International Monetary Fund.

06/12/2011 | World

Geithner backs EU crisis plan, stresses ECB role

US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner threw his weight behind a Franco-German plan to tackle the euro zone's sovereign debt crisis and said the European Central Bank had to play a major role in any solution.

08/12/2011 | World

European Central Bank cuts rates to record low on recession fears

The European Central Bank cut interest rates by a quarter of a point today to counter the twin threats of recession and deflation in the euro zone, and is expected to unveil fresh measures to help banks hurt by the bloc's debt crisis.

21/12/2011 | World

Banks take 489 billion euros in 3-year ECB loans

Europe's banks borrowed nearly 490 billion euros from the European Central Bank at its first-ever offer of three-year loans today, encouraging demand for the euro and stocks on hopes the funding will ease the two-year old debt crisis.

11/01/2012 | World

Fitch ratings: ECB must do more to prevent 'cataclysmic' euro collapse

The European Central Bank should ramp up its buying of troubled euro zone debt to support Italy and prevent a "cataclysmic" collapse of the euro, David Riley, the head of sovereign ratings for Fitch, said today.

20/01/2012 | World

Greece debt swap talks drag into weekend

Greece and its creditors will continue negotiations on a debt swap on Saturday, after late-night talks edged them closer to a vital deal but failed to clinch an agreement.

27/01/2012 | World

ECB's Draghi: liquidity measures avert euro zone crunch

The European Central Bank's loans to banks have averted a major credit crunch but credit remains seriously impaired in parts of the euro area, ECB President Mario Draghi said at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

09/02/2012 | World

ECB's Draghi sees some signs of euro zone stabilisation

Tentative signs of stabilisation in the euro zone economy remained over the past month but uncertainty remains high, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said today after the ECB held interest rates at a record low of 1.0 percent.

29/02/2012 | World

Banks gorge on 530 billion euros of ECB 3-year funds

Banks grabbed 530 billion euros at the European Central Bank's second offering of cheap three-year funds today, fuelling hopes that more credit will flow to businesses and government borrowing costs will ease further.

08/03/2012 | World

European Central Bank holds rates at 1%

The European Central Bank held interest rates at 1.0 percent for the third month running today, pausing to assess the impact of a dramatic sweep of measures that has unsettled some at the bank.

08/03/2012 | World

European Central Bank slashes euro zone's growth forecast

The European Central Bank lowered its euro zone growth forecast after holding interest rates at record lows today, and said things would have been much worse without its dramatic action to pump a trillion euros into the banking system.

13/03/2012 | World

ECB Draghi: 'We are alert to the risk of inflation although it's not materializing'

European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said today that the euro zone's economy appears to be stabilizing but inflation risks were not currently materializing as a large output gap remained.

04/04/2012 | World

ECB's Draghi: Exit strategy talk is premature

ECB President Mario Draghi said today that the euro zone inflation outlook did not warrant a retreat from loose monetary policy given the poor state of the bloc's economy.

03/05/2012 | World

Wall Street drops, European shares end flat on ECB, US data

US stocks fell as economic data sent mixed signals on the recovery a day before the April payrolls report. Meanwhile, European equities erased early gains to close broadly flat.

06/06/2012 | World

ECB holds interest rates at 1%

The European Central Bank left interest rates at 1 percent today, dashing some market expectations that it might move quickly to combat fears about the health of the euro zone.

06/06/2012 | World

Trichet: EU institutions need emergency powers

Europe's key institutions should have emergency powers to override economic and financial policies at a national level in times of crisis, Jean-Claude Trichet, former head of the European Central Bank, said today.

15/06/2012 | World

ECB's Draghi flags euro risks, but no inflation threat

The euro zone economy faces serious risks and no inflation threat, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said today in comments that heightened expectations the ECB could cut interest rates or take other policy action soon.

29/06/2012 | World

Draghi says EU crisis summit delivered 'tangible' results

European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said he was pleased with steps taken at a summit of EU leaders, including a decision to allow direct recapitalisation of banks, but added that future aid must be tied to strict conditions.

02/07/2012 | World

ECB tough message to Greece: focus on reforms

Greece must not lose time trying to renegotiate its foreign bailout but focus on reforms instead, European Central Bank policymaker Joerg Asmussen said today, in a blow to Greek hopes of winning quick concessions from its lenders.

05/07/2012 | World

ECB cuts rates to new low, no move on bolder measures

The European Central Bank cut interest rates to a record low today to breathe life into a deteriorating euro zone economy but steered clear of more dramatic measures such as buying government bonds or flooding banks with fresh liquidity.

12/07/2012 | World

ECB zero rate slashes banks' overnight deposits

The European Central Bank's new zero deposit rate had an instant impact as it came into force, with banks more than halving the amount of cash parked there overnight and one ECB policymaker saying he expected the move to increase banks' lending.

17/07/2012 | World

'Euro zone must share sovereignty in deeper union,' ECB

The euro zone will have to get powers to limit the debt issuance of its members, intervene in national budgets and change national policies to build a deeper economic union, ECB Executive Board Member Joerg Asmussen said.

21/07/2012 | World

ECB's Draghi says euro not in danger

European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said that the euro was not in danger despite some analysts' worse case scenarios for a break-up and said that greater financial, budgetary and political union among euro zone countries was inevitable.

30/07/2012 | World

EU investigates ECB's Draghi following complaint

The European Union's internal watchdog has launched an investigation of European Central Bank President Mario Draghi following a complaint of conflict of interest, the institution's spokeswoman said.

31/07/2012 | World

Italy's Monti sees light in euro tunnel

Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti said today that Europe was starting to see light at the end of the tunnel of the euro zone's sovereign debt crisis, belying a welter of deteriorating economic data.

01/08/2012 | World

ECB's Draghi faces leadership test over euro pledge

European Central Bank President Mario Draghi faces intense pressure from investors, European leaders and even the United States to deliver on his pledge to do whatever it takes to save the euro.

02/08/2012 | World

After keeping interest rates on hold, ECB Draghi warns euro zone growth weak

Euro zone economic growth is weak and uncertainty about the outlook is weighing on confidence in the bloc, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said after the ECB kept interest rates on hold.

02/08/2012 | World

IMF welcomes ECB’s new aim at crisis

In response to queries regarding the European Central Bank’s latest policy meeting, the IMF came to stage to back ECB’s President Mario Draghi, who announced today they will gear up to buy Italian and Spanish bonds on the open market but would only act after euro zone governments have activated bailout funds to do the same.

04/09/2012 | World

'ECB to intervene markets to save euro,' European Commission head

European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso, indicated today that he is confident the European Central Bank (ECB) will intervene on markets in order to save the euro.

06/09/2012 | World

ECB cuts growth forecasts, see only gradual recovery

The euro zone economy will probably contract more than previously expected this year, according to new European Central Bank staff forecasts which also raised the bank's outlook for inflation for 2012/2013.

07/09/2012 | World

Merkel defends ECB after bond-buying program announced

Chancellor Angela Merkel defended the European Central Bank as independent and strong today following an uproar in Germany over the ECB's new bond-buying program for struggling euro zone members.

10/09/2012 | World

Spain's PM expects 'reasonable' terms for any new aid

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said he expected the European Union to set reasonable conditions for Spain if the country sought a bailout, saying he should not be told exactly where to trim public spending and would not cut pensions.

24/09/2012 | World

German business mood worsens despite ECB bond plan

German business sentiment dropped for a fifth straight month in September to its lowest since early 2010, raising fears of recession and underlining that a bold bond-buying plan laid out by the European Central Bank is no economic elixir.

04/10/2012 | World

ECB holds rates, Draghi eyed on Spain

The European Central Bank kept its interest rates on hold today as markets awaited signals from its President Mario Draghi about when he might pull the trigger on his new bond-buying plan.

08/11/2012 | World

ECB holds rates, waits for call to unlock bond plan

The European Central Bank held its main interest rate at 0.75 percent, deferring any cut in borrowing costs while it assesses the extent of the euro zone's economic downturn and waits for a cue to use its new bond-purchase program.

08/11/2012 | World

Draghi: economic outlook weak, not improving

The European Central Bank expects the euro zone economy to remain poor, ECB President Mario Draghi said after the bank left interest rates unchanged today.

06/12/2012 | World

ECB holds rates, to give new economic outlook

The European Central Bank held interest rates at a record low of 0.75 percent, leaving investors to shift their attention to new economic forecasts for clues about possible cuts next year.

10/01/2013 | World

ECB to hold fire as economy shows glimmers of hope

07/02/2013 | World

ECB holds rates at 0.75%

07/02/2013 | World

ECB says will monitor impact of euro strength

The European Central Bank will monitor the economic impact of a strengthening euro, ECB President Mario Draghi said today, feeding expectations the climbing currency could open the door to an interest rate cut.