European Central Bank

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Merry Christmas...

... and all the best for 2021 from all of us here at the ECB.

Our response to the coronavirus pandemic

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Press releases1
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Interviews
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Publications

23 December 2020 PODCAST

Building a bridge towards economic recovery

How will the coronavirus vaccine affect economic recovery in 2021? Where do we stand after nine months of fighting the crisis? And what is the role of the ECB’s monetary policy? Our host Michael Steen discusses these questions with our Chief Economist Philip R. Lane.

The ECB Podcast

23 December 2020 #ASKECB

Live Twitter Q&A with Isabel Schnabel

Executive Board member Isabel Schnabel answered questions from Twitter users on monetary policy, including the ECB measures in response to the coronavirus pandemic. She also discussed asset prices, the digital euro and climate change.

Full Q&A

22/12/2020: Consolidated financial statement of the Eurosystem as at 18 December 2020
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Commentary
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18/12/2020: ECB nominates Frank Elderson as Vice-Chair of the Supervisory Board
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18/12/2020: Euro area monthly balance of payments: October 2020
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15/12/2020: Consolidated financial statement of the Eurosystem as at 11 December 2020
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Commentary
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11/12/2020: Decisions taken by the Governing Council of the ECB (in addition to decisions setting interest rates)
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All press releases

17/12/2020: Isabel Schnabel: Climate change and monetary policy
Presentation by Isabel Schnabel, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, Exchange of views with German economists on the coronavirus (COVID-19), organised by German Ministry of Finance
English
16/12/2020: Isabel Schnabel: The importance of trust for the ECB’s monetary policy
Speech by Isabel Schnabel, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, as part of the seminar series “Havarie Europa. Zur Pathogenese europäischer Gegenwarten” at the Hamburg Institute for Social Research (Hamburger Institut für Sozialforschung)
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Slides
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16/12/2020: Fabio Panetta: Keeping cyber risk at bay: our individual and joint responsibility
Introductory remarks by Fabio Panetta, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, at the fifth meeting of the Euro Cyber Resilience Board for pan-European Financial Infrastructures
English
15/12/2020: Philip R. Lane: The resilience of the euro
Presentation by Philip R. Lane, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, at the ECB legal colloquium on Post-Pandemic Economic Governance
English
14/12/2020: Isabel Schnabel: Welcome address
Welcome address by Isabel Schnabel, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, at the third roundtable on euro risk-free rates
English

All speeches

18/12/2020: Isabel Schnabel: Q&A on Twitter
Interview on Twitter with Isabel Schnabel, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, conducted and published on 17 December 2020
English
02/12/2020: Philip R. Lane: Transcript of the fireside chat at Reuters Global Outlook Investment Summit
Interview with Philip R. Lane, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, conducted by Balázs Korányi on 1 December 2020
English
01/12/2020: Isabel Schnabel: Interview with Bloomberg
Interview with Isabel Schnabel, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, conducted by Jana Randow, Carolynn Look and Alexander Weber on 30 November 2020
English
30/11/2020: Christine Lagarde: The future of money – innovating while retaining trust
Article by Christine Lagarde, President of the ECB, in L’ENA hors les murs magazine
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28/11/2020: Yves Mersch: Interview with Le Monde
Interview with Yves Mersch, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, conducted by Marie Charrel and Eric Albert
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All interviews

02/12/2020: Fabio Panetta: Money in the digital era
Blog post by Fabio Panetta, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB

Summary
The results of the ECB’s latest study on payment behaviours suggest that no single means of payment currently available meets all consumer needs, Executive Board member Fabio Panetta writes in The ECB Blog. This underlines the importance of continuing to give people a choice on how to pay.
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20/10/2020: Isabel Schnabel: Don’t take it for granted: the value of high-quality data and statistics for the ECB’s policymaking
Blog post by Isabel Schnabel, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB

Summary
High-quality data and statistics provide indispensable input for sound policy decisions, including at the ECB, writes Executive Board member Isabel Schnabel. Today’s World Statistics Day reminds us of the importance of data we can trust.
English
02/10/2020: Fabio Panetta: We must be prepared to issue a digital euro
Blog post by Fabio Panetta, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB

Summary
We should be ready to issue a digital euro if and when it is necessary, writes Executive Board member Fabio Panetta. The euro is a currency that Europeans trust. We need to make sure that it is fit for the future.
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11/09/2020: Philip R. Lane: The outlook for the euro area
Blog post by Philip R. Lane, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB

Summary
Our current measures are providing crucial support to the economic recovery in the euro area, writes Chief Economist Philip R. Lane. But there is no room for complacency as inflation remains far below the aim and risks continue to be tilted to the downside.
English
02/09/2020: Luis de Guindos, Fabio Panetta, Isabel Schnabel: Europe needs a fully fledged capital markets union – now more than ever
Blog post by Luis de Guindos, Vice-President of the ECB, and Fabio Panetta and Isabel Schnabel, Members of the Executive Board of the ECB

Summary
The coronavirus crisis makes progress on capital markets union even more important, write Luis de Guindos, Fabio Panetta and Isabel Schnabel. In the light of the European Commission’s forthcoming Action Plan, they outline priority areas for reform to foster European capital markets.
English

All blog posts

21/12/2020: Working paper no. 2509: Losers amongst the losers: the welfare effects of the Great Recession across cohorts
English
18/12/2020: Working paper no. 2508: Bank credit and market-based finance for corporations: the effects of minibond issuances
English
18/12/2020: Working paper no. 2507: The Covid-19 crisis and consumption: survey evidence from six EU countries
English
17/12/2020: Working paper no. 2506: What value added in the trade balances of euro area financial centres?
English
17/12/2020: Working paper no. 2505: Daily tracker of global economic activity: a close-up of the COVID-19 pandemic
English
16/12/2020: Working paper no. 2504: Monetary and macroprudential policy complementarities: evidence from European credit registers
English
15/12/2020: Working paper no. 2503: The impact of US tariffs against China on US imports: evidence for trade diversion?
English
15/12/2020: Working paper no. 2502: On the origin of systemic risk
English
15/12/2020: Research bulletin no. 78: How does competition among high-frequency traders affect market liquidity?
English
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14/12/2020: Working paper no. 2501: Weigh(t)ing the basket: aggregate and component-based inflation forecasts for the euro area
English

All publications

22 December 2020 EDUCATION

Visitor Centre open for virtual lectures!

The ECB Visitor Centre is offering virtual lectures for groups. Experts stand ready to give presentations on ECB topics and answer your questions. Curious? Book a lecture for your group now.

More information
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PUBLIC CONSULTATION

Digital euro: have your say!

Like the euro we already use every day, the design of a digital euro should meet the needs of a broad range of users. That’s why we want to hear the views of the public and of all interested stakeholders on the benefits and challenges of issuing a digital euro and on its possible design.

Interest rates

Marginal lending facility	0.25 %
Main refinancing operations (fixed rate)	0.00 %
Deposit facility	− 0.50 %

Effective from 18 September 2019

Past key ECB interest rates

Inflation rate

Full inflation chart
Inflation dashboard

Reference rates

USD	US dollar	1.2219
JPY	Japanese yen	126.54
GBP	Pound sterling	0.90408
CHF	Swiss franc	1.0854

Last update: Monday, 28 December 2020 Euro foreign exchange rates

Financial stability

Market operations

Multimedia

ECB Governing Council Press Conference - 10 September 2020
ECB Governing Council Press Conference - 16 July 2020
ECB Governing Council Press Conference - 04 June 2020
Join a Youth Dialogue with Christine Lagarde
ECB Governing Council Press Conference - 30 April 2020
Christine Lagarde, President of the ECB, signing the euro banknotes, 28 November 2019
The ECB explains: crypto-assets
ECB Forum on Central Banking 2019
Download the ECB Art App
Travelogue: ECB Executive Board member Benoît Cœuré visiting Vorwerk factory in Cloyes-sur-le-Loir

ECB Press Conference - 10 September 2020
ECB Press Conference - 16 July 2020
ECB Press Conference - 04 June 2020
Youth Dialogue with Christine Lagarde - 27 May 2020
ECB Press Conference - 30 April 2020
New signature for euro banknotes - 28 November 2019
Christine Lagarde's Keynote Speech - European Banking Congress 2019
Farewell President Draghi - 28 October 2019
ECB Conference on Gender and Career Progression - 21 October 2019
ECB Press Conference - 24 October 2019

The international role of the euro, June 2018
Financial integration in Europe, May 2018
Price and wage-setting in advanced economies
ESCB Legal Conference 2018
Legal framework of the Eurosystem and the European System of Central Banks. ECB legal acts and instruments
Statistics for Economic and Monetary Union. Enhancements and new directions, 2003-12, by Peter Bull
The monetary policy of the ECB
The payment system – payments, securities and derivatives, and the role of the Eurosystem in this field