FRANKFURT (MNI) – The European Central Bank will only act within
the limits of its mandate but may nevertheless have to employ
exceptional measures, ECB President Mario Draghi said in a contribution
to German weekly Die Zeit.
The comments appear to be directed at recent criticism by
Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann, who warned that ECB’s new bond-
buying plans risks overstretching the central bank’s mandate and could
undermine its independence.
“The ECB will do what is necessary to ensure price stability. It
will remain independent. And it will always act within the limits of its
mandate,” Draghi said.
“Yet it should be understood that fulfilling our mandate sometimes
requires us to go beyond standard monetary policy tools. When markets
are fragmented or influenced by irrational fears, our monetary policy
signals do not reach citizens evenly across the euro area,” he
continued.
Draghi stressed that fixing “such blockages to ensure a single
monetary policy and therefore price stability” can “at times require
exceptional measures” and is the responsibility of the central bank.
“We never lose sight of our mission to guarantee a strong and
stable currency. The banknotes that we issue bear the European flag and
are a powerful symbol of European identity,” Draghi said.
— Frankfurt newsroom: +49-69-720142; email: jtreeck@mni-news.com
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