The consolidated financial situation report of the central banking system of the 20 eurozone countries and the European Central Bank (ECB), led by Christine Lagarde, noted that as of July 11, the total value of assets held for monetary policy purposes by the Eurosystem amounted to 3.956 trillion euros.
Compared to the previous week, there was a debt amortization of 3.031 billion euros.
This debt portfolio reduction is primarily due to an amortization of 1.8 billion euros from the public sector purchase program.
Secondly, a reduction in the debt value related to the private sector securities purchase program by 600 million euros and, thirdly, an amortization of 400 million euros in the asset purchase program launched in March 2020 due to the pandemic emergency.
The ECB has been decreasing public debt purchases as a means to combat inflation.
In the latest monetary policy meeting on June 5, where reference rates were reduced by 25 basis points, the ECB council noted that the asset purchase program and the pandemic emergency purchase program portfolios “are declining at a moderate and predictable pace, as the Eurosystem has ceased reinvesting maturing principal repayments.”
This report also outlines the status of foreign exchange operations and investment activities.
On July 11, there were banknotes in circulation in the eurozone valued at 1.589 trillion euros.
