FRANKFURT (MktNews) - The European Central Bank, as expected, left unchanged all official interest rates at the latest meeting of its policy-making Governing Council, the central bank announced Thursday.
The ECB left unchanged the minimum bid rate on its variable-rate refinancing (refi) operation at 4.75%, the deposit rate -- which forms the floor for euro money market rates -- at 3.75%, and the marginal lending rate -- which forms the ceiling -- at 5.75%.
The ECB meeting, held by telephone conference, was intially scheduled to take place in Dublin, Ireland, with a press conference to follow. However, those plans were cancelled as a result of the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease. There will be no press conference today.
The ECB last raised rates by 25 basis points after its meeting on October 5. That was the seventh hike since November 1999, representing a cumulative 225 basis points' worth of monetary tightening in the period.
Most analysts believe the ECB will cut interest rates in the first half of this year. Others expect the ECB to cut later in the year or leave rates unchanged for the full year.
The ECB Governing Council is next scheduled to meet on March 29.