ECB keeps interest rates and pace of QE unchanged, as expected

The European Central Bank kept all its main policy settings unchanged, issuing a statement identical to that published after the governing council's previous meeting.

Interest rates on its main refinancing operations, marginal lending facility and deposit facility were kept at 0.0%, 0.25% and -0.50%, respectively.

Similarly, the council reiterated that the pace of asset purchases would continue at €20.0bn per month until "shortly before it starts raising the key ECB interest rates" and with the aim of reinforcing the accomodative impact of its policy rates.

And the ECB would continue to reinvest the principal payments of its maturing securities for an extended period of time past when it began raising the "key" ECB interest rates.

Following the ECB's decision, as of 1405 GMT, euro/dollar was dipping 0.06% to 1.11328.