The European Central Bank has announced a massive €750 billion programme of bond buying after a late night emergency phone conference of its governing council. The move is to try to fight off pressures emerging in euro zone government bond markets and prevent a new financial crisis taking hold. There will be close attention to the reaction in European markets on Thursday morning as analysts and investors pick through the detail. The programme – known as the Pandemic Emergency Purchase Programme (PEPP) – will involve the ECB buying bonds issued by governments and by some companies. The move follows pressure on financial markets and calls on the ECB to do more to combat the crisis.

Source: The Irish Times March 19, 2020 00:11 UTC