ECB Minutes Reiterate Plans to Wind Up Stimulus This Year

Investing.com - Minutes from the European Central Bank's Oct. 25 policy meeting indicated that policymakers are on track to wind up its asset purchase program in December, despite growing concerns over risks to the economic outlook.

Policymakers believe that risks to the euro area outlook were roughly balanced, although some noted that there were “a number of arguments pointed towards risks to the growth outlook tilting to the downside”.

"It was important to emphasise that the incoming information, while somewhat weaker than expected, remained overall consistent with an ongoing broad-based expansion of the euro area economy and gradually rising inflation,” the ECB said.

Updated forecasts in December would evaluate the impact of trade developments on the euro zone outlook, the minutes said.

“The December projections would provide an updated assessment of the impact of developments in trade on the outlook for euro area growth, which had been revised down successively in recent staff projection exercises, reflecting to a large extent the impact of external factors.”

The ECB kept interest rates on hold last month and reiterated that they would remain at current levels through the summer of 2019 at the earliest.

At 7:37 AM ET (11:37 GMT), EUR/USD was trading at 1.1411 from around 1.1414 ahead of the release, while EUR/GBP was at 0.8873 from 0.8866 earlier.

The ECB's next monetary policy meeting will take place on Dec. 13.

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