© Provided by The TelegraphChristine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank (ECB), speaks during a live stream video of the central bank's virtual rate decision news conference in Frankfurt
Christine Lagarde is ramping up bond purchases in an effort to keep borrowing costs from surging, after concern that the European Central Bank was failing to combat turmoil in financial markets.
The ECB said it "expects purchases under the pandemic emergency purchase programme over the next quarter to be conducted at a significantly higher pace than during the first months of this year".
A total of ?1.85 trillion (£1.58 trillion) is available to spend, but the ECB said it would increase that envelope "if required to maintain favourable financing conditions to help counter the negative pandemic shock to the path of inflation".
It comes after yields climbed in global markets, driven in part by expectations that US President Joe Biden's bumper $1.9 trillion stimulus package could boost growth and inflation sufficiently to force up interest rates.
"This suggests that the ECB aims to correct the mis-match between its dovish rhetoric and apparent policy of benign neglect over the past two weeks or so," said Andrew Kenningham at Capital Economics.
As a result markets rallied on the statement, holding down borrowing costs.
More follows...
Sign up to the Front Page newsletter for free: Your essential guide to the day's agenda from The Telegraph - direct to your inbox seven days a week.