ECB Draghi: Central Bankers Not Powerless Even at Lower Bound

By Jack Duffy

     PARIS (MNI) - Quantitative easing and other non-conventional policy tolls

have proved that central bankers are not powerless, even when interest rates

have reached their so-called lower bound, European Central Bank President Mario

Draghi said Wednesday.

     In a speech in Lindau, Germany focused largely on academic research, Draghi

said "large-scale asset purchases can...increase investors' risk-bearing

capacity, leading to a portfolio rebalancing towards risky assets and to

strengthened lending activity for banks." 

     Draghi said that "provided they are willing to explore non-standard policy

avenues, [central banks] can continue pursuing their price stability mandates

even in the most adverse circumstances."

     More

--MNI Paris Bureau; tel: +33 1-42-71-55-41; email: jack.duffy@marketnews.com

--MNI London Bureau; tel: +44 203-586-2225; email: les.commons@marketnews.com

[TOPICS: M$X$$$,M$$EC$]