Last week’s expansion of the ECB’s QE programme is cause for concern, not celebration. Monetary policy is still the only defence the euro region has against the dangers of deflation. The central bank maintains it is merely using another tool in its monetary policy box. For two consecutive months, the ECB has spent less on Portuguese and Irish bonds than its own rules say it should. But the unpalatable truth is that widening the bond-buying programme beyond government debt is evidence of policy failure, not success.

Source: Mint June 12, 2016 18:50 UTC