ECB leaves its main refinancing rate at 0.00%, repeats its pledge to continue purchases under PEPP with total envelope of EUR 1,350 billion

The European Central Bank (ECB) remained its main refinancing rate unchanged at 0.00 percent on Thursday, as widely expected. Its interest rates on the marginal lending facility and the deposit facility were also left unchanged at 0.25 percent and -0.50 percent, respectively.

In its policy statement, the ECB said:

• Governing Council expects key ECB interest rates to remain at their present or lower levels until it has seen the inflation outlook robustly converge to a level sufficiently close to, but below, 2% within its projection horizon;
• Governing Council will continue its purchases under the pandemic emergency purchase programme (PEPP) with total envelope of EUR1,350 billion; the purchases will continue to be conducted in flexible manner over time, across asset classes and among jurisdictions;
• Will conduct net asset purchases under the PEPP until at least the end of June 2021 and, in any case, until it judges that coronavirus crisis phase is over;
• Will reinvest the principal payments from maturing securities purchased under the PEPP until at least the end of 2022;
• Net purchases under the asset purchase programme (APP) will continue at monthly pace of EUR20 billion, together with the purchases under additional EUR120 billion temporary envelope until the end of the year; monthly net asset purchases under the APP to run for as long as necessary to reinforce the accommodative impact of its policy rates, and to end shortly before it starts raising the key ECB interest rates;
• Governing Council will also continue to provide ample liquidity through its refinancing operations;
• Governing Council continues to stand ready to adjust all of its instruments, as appropriate, to ensure that inflation moves towards its aim in sustained manner, in line with its commitment to symmetry.