The European Central Bank left its key interest rates unchanged, as expected, on Thursday and reaffirmed that it is set to end asset purchases in the third quarter.
The Governing Council, led by ECB President Christine Lagarde, left the main refinancing rate at zero, the deposit rate at -0.50 percent and the marginal lending rate at 0.25 percent.
"Looking ahead, the ECB's monetary policy will depend on the incoming data and the Governing Council's evolving assessment of the outlook," the bank said. The ECB expects inflation to remain high over the coming months, mainly because of the sharp rise in energy costs. The bank said the incoming data since the last meeting reinforce the expectation that net asset purchases under the asset purchase program, or APP, should be concluded in the third quarter. Thus it confirmed the view from the previous meeting. ING economist Carsten Brzeski said that it would now require a severe recession or a sharp drop in headline inflation forecasts for the ECB not to stop net asset purchases over the summer.
For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com
Business News
June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.