Europe - ECB & BOE 01 (May 08 - Nov 11)

[millionairemind]

EUR/USD up 100pips now...

Jun 30, 2010
ECB lends billions to banks
BERLIN (Germaany) - THE European Central Bank says it will lend euro 131.9 billion (S$225.07 billion) to banks for three months - a move that comes as a larger auction of 12-month loans expires.

The ECB said on Wednesday that 171 institutions subscribed to the three-month refinancing operation.

Analysts have pointed to the operation as an opportunity for banks to roll over loans from the record euro 442 billion auction carried out last June if needed. Those loans expire on Thursday.

That unusual 12-month operation was part of the ECB's effort to keep cash moving in the markets and stem further fallout from the financial crisis. -- AP

[kennynah]

where do the ECB's come from??? i've always wondered...

[winston]

ECB chief rules out risk of new recession

ECB president Jean-Claude Trichet ruled out on Sunday the risk of a new recession, after a week of soft economic data fuelled market fears of a dreaded double-dip into a new slump.

"I don't think so at all," Trichet told journalists when asked if a double-dip recession was on the horizon.

"At a global level it is clear that we are experiencing a recovery, which is confirmed particularly in the emerging world but also in the industrialized world," he said at an economics conference in the south of France.

But he warned that growth could not be taken for granted in industrialised countries, saying that "it depends on us, it depends on the capacity of the industrialized countries to reinforce confidence."

"This is the reason why it is so important that we have fiscal policies designed to reinforce confidence of households ... of businesses ... of savers and of investors," he said.

Trichet also said that austerity drives being implemented in several European countries would not hurt the recovery, as some top economists and US officials have suggested.

Global stocks suffered heavy losses and bonds rallied last week as a string of dismal economic data from the United States and China raised doubts about the health of the global economic recovery.

Source: AFP Global Edition

[kennynah]

no surprises here...

ECB holds rates at 1%

[kennynah]

BoE maintains key rate

GBP200bil Asset Purchase

[kennynah]

trichet at press conference says :

policy stance remains accommodative - can cut or raise rates when required
uncertainty still prevailing - can cut rates quickly if needed
eruozone recovery to proceed at moderate pace - not keen to raise rates
current rate appropriate - extra spray talk
risks to price outlook tilted to upside - will raise rates if necessary
underlying momentum positive in eurozone economy

[winston]

So who's going to be paying the bill for the party ? Or maybe you try to sneak out the back door while pretending to go to the washroom

ECB buys nearly two billion euros in government debt

FRANKFURT (AFP) - – The European Central Bank said Monday it bought nearly two billion euros' worth of government bonds last week as ECB president Jean-Claude Trichet urged eurozone members to bolster confidence in their public finances.

The ECB said it bought sovereign bonds worth 1.965 billion euros (2.6 billion dollars), up markedly from the 1.35 billion euros it bought the previous week.

The amount did not include bond purchases made on Thursday and Friday however, when the central bank reportedly bought huge amounts to help ease the strain on the bonds of weaker eurozone members such as Ireland and Portugal.

It was still the highest level of purchases since the beginning of July, when weekly ECB purchases amounted to roughly four billion euros' worth of bonds issued by Greece, Ireland and Portugal.

Since the bank's Securities Markets Programme was launched in May during the Greek debt crisis, the ECB has bought government bonds worth a little more than 69 billion euros.

In the programme's first week, purchases totaled 16.5 billion euros but the amounts fell to zero in late October and early November.

The action helped ease some tension on government bond markets, with the yield -- the rate of return -- on 10-year Greek bonds falling on Monday to 11.563 percent in afternoon trading from 11.632 percent at the close on Friday.

Yields on Irish, Italian, Portuguese and Spanish bonds all rose, however.

While it has agreed to help try and smooth out market volatility for now, the ECB has urged EU leaders to set up a functional system for monitoring debt-laden governments.

Last week, Trichet pressed governments again to "pursue ambitious and credible multi-year consolidation strategies and implement fully the planned corrective measures."

At the Royal Bank of Scotland, economist Nick Matthews said that "while the current ECB purchases might calm markets, there is nothing preventing contagion from returning.

"We remain of the view that the ECB will end up supporting Spain" as well.

http://sg.news.yahoo.com/afp/20101207/t ... b2fc3.html

[kennynah]

if you've not already heard about this...

reported in a british newspaper today, ECB chief trichet has been quoted as having hinted to raising ECB rates sooner than later to curb rising inflation, despite the economic turmoil EU Zone is undergoing...

anyways...this year 2011...

if i were to play a theme....it would be IR theme...

eg...a long term trade to Long TLT

[Poles]

bro,

what is TLT??

[kennynah]

bro..a US counter...it's a bond etf...i think....there's a thread on TLT uder "US stocks"