Monetary policy instruments

Indicative calendar for the Eurosystem's tender operations

Main- and longer-term refinancing operations

The Implementation of monetary policy in the euro area

Current ECB press releases in German language can be found in the ECB segment. Thereunder there are current press releases regarding liquidity providing operations in foreign currency, extension of the eligible assets and increased liquidity provision in Euro.

The Eurosystem has a number of monetary policy instruments which it uses to achieve its monetary policy objectives. Here you will find information on the main components of this set of instruments: open market operations, standing facilities and minimum reserves.

The main refinancing operations which are offered weekly and which run for one week are at the centre of these open market operations. In addition, the Eurosystem offers a longer-term refinancing operation once a month (which has a maturity of three months) and actually a supplementary longer-term refinancing operation once a month (which has the a maturity of one maintenance period) and conducts liquidity providing or liquidity absorbing fine-tuning operations. Each September the ECB publishes the dates for the open market operations in an indicative calendar for the following year.

The two standing facilities - the marginal lending facility and the deposit facility - are designed to provide or absorb liquidity until the next business day. Furthermore, the Eurosystem prescribes the minimum reserves which the banks are required to hold order to increase the structural liquidity requirements of the banking system (more information on this issue can be found here: "Monetary policy framework".