ECB slows rate of covered bond purchases

FXStreet (London) - European Central Bank data shows that it has slowed the rate of its covered bond purchases ahead of plans to include asset-backed securities in the bank’s asset purchase programme.

The ECB purchased EUR2.629bn in covered bonds last week. The covered bond purchases – debt backed by pools of residential or commercial property assets – have now reached EUR7.408bn as part of the ECB’s stated objective of aggressively expanding its balance sheet to EUR1 trillion in a bid to fight the Eurozone slowdown by depressing real lending rates through excess liquidity.