European Central Bank keeps interest rate at 1.00%

Forex Pros – The European Central Bank kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged for the 20th consecutive month in January, it announced on Thursday.

The ECB said it was maintaining the benchmark interest rate at 1.00%, in a widely expected move.

ECB president Jean-Claude Trichet was to comment on the decision at a press conference later in the day.

Following the announcement, the euro was up against the U.S. dollar, with EUR/USD climbing 0.31% to hit 1.3170.

Meanwhile, European stock markets were broadly higher. The EURO STOXX 50 jumped 1.25%, France's CAC 40 gained 0.68%, Germany's DAX added 0.10%, while the FTSE 100 shed 0.03%.

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