ECB Holds Rates at Record Low of 0.75%

摘要

The European Central Bank left interest rates unchanged even as a stronger currency threatens the euro area's recovery from recession. Policy makers meeting in Frankfurt kept the benchmark rate at a record low of 0.75%, as forecast by all 60 economists in a news survey. Recent indicators suggest the euro-area economy may return to growth later this year, easing pressure on the ECB to lower rates further. At the same time, a rising euro could hurt exports and stymie the recovery before it has begun, and looser monetary policy in the US and Japan may continue to weaken the dollar and the yen.