Eurobank rate remains unchanged

The European Central Bank left interest rates unchanged today as new bank president Jean-Claude Trichet presided over his first policymaking meeting.

The ECB’s governing council, meeting in Frankfurt, left the key refinancing rate at 2%, where it has stood since a half percentage-point cut on June 6.

The decision was widely expected because most economists think the bank will wait until next year before changing rates again as it waits for an expected economic recovery to begin.

Attention was focused on Trichet himself and the statements he was to make later, with investors and analysts eager to see how he might differ from predecessor Wim Duisenberg.