The European Central Bank, as expected left interest rates unchanged on Thursday and reiterated its plan to scale down the size of its bond-buying program next month and end purchases in December. The ECB left its main lending rate, known as the refi rate, at 0%, while the paid on deposits left overnight at the central bank remains at minus 0.4% and the rate on the marginal lending facility remains at 0.25%. The ECB repeated that it expects rates to remain at present levels at least through the summer of 2019. The ECB plans to reduce the size of its monthly bond purchases from 30 billion euros a month to 15 billion euros in October, completing purchases in December, but added that the wrap-up would "be subject to incoming data confirming the medium-term inflation outlook." and to reinvest the principal payments from maturing securities "for an extended period of time" after the bond-buying program ends. ECB President Mario Draghi will host a news conference at 8:30 a.m. Eastern.
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