ECB's QE programme could be extended or expanded, says Coeure
European Central Bank (ECB) Executive Board member Benoit Coeure said the quantitative easing (QE) programme announced on Thursday could be extended or expanded if it fails to lift inflation.
Couere told Bloomberg at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Friday that if the ECB does not bring inflation back to its target of close to but below 2% with its QE programme, then “we’ll have to do more or we have to do it for longer”.
His remarks come a day after the ECB announced a €1.1trn QE package, with the purchase of €60bn-worth of private and public securities each month until September 2016.
“It’s intended to last until September 2016 and then we’ll reassess and we’ll see if it is enough or if it is not enough,” Coeure said. “We’ve been able to design it in a way that brings as many people as possible on board. So yes, we’re happy.”
Bank of England governor Mark Carney said the programme was “absolutely necessary” for medium-term prosperity in the bloc.
"I welcome the steps that the ECB took yesterday," Carney said in Davos on Friday.