European Central Bank in trouble rolling out quantitative easing

The amount of bonds eligible for the ECB to buy under its quantitative-easing programme is poised to shrink as the purchases risk pushing more yields below zero, according to Societe Generale.

The ECB, led by president Mario Draghi, began buying euro-area sovereign debt on Monday under the 19-month plan to inject €1.1tn into the region’s economy to spur growth.

While the ECB was said to have purchased debt with negative yields this week, including that of Germany and the Netherlands, its rules preclude buying securities yielding less than its deposit rate of minus 0.20%.