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The European Central Bank (ECB) has left its program of quantitative easing unchanged, but closed the door to further interest rate cuts while inflation remains below its target despite accelerating economic growth. The ECB’s stimulus program plans to acquire bonds of 2.3 trillion EUR and the bank is charging creditors, which hold excess cash through negative interest rates in an effort to boost euro area price growth to less than 2%.

Although inflation is stabilizing at above 1%, the ECB remains reluctant to tighten its policy, as it fears that recent acceleration is mainly driven by energy prices and that wage growth is sluggish.

In its guidelines, the ECB says it expects key interest rates to remain at its current level for an indefinite period of time and long after the end of asset purchases. In its previous decisions, however, the bank has generally indicated that interest rates will remain at the current or lower level, suggesting that the ECB’s mood swings.

The bank also confirmed that the purchase of assets worth 60 billion EUR per month could be increased or prolonged if the outlook for the Eurozone is less favorable.

The ECB kept its primary interest rate on deposits, which is its main instrument for interest rates, without changing the level of -0.4%. The main refinancing rate, which determines the cost of credit in the economy, was also maintained at its level of 0.00% and the interest on the marginal lending facility remained at 0.25%.

