Frankfurt, Germany - June 6, 2024

STORYLINE:
The Governing Council of the European Central Bank (ECB) has lived up to expectations and decided at its meeting on Thursday to lower all three key interest rates by 25 basis points to 4.25%. With this downward move, the first in eight years, it is ahead of the US Federal Reserve (Fed) which, for the time being, has ruled out cutting interest rates.

Board members have lowered the benchmark rate for its refinancing operations to 4.25%, the deposit rate - which remunerates excess overnight reserves - has also been cut by another 25 basis points to 3.75%, and the same for the lending facility - the rate at which banks lend overnight - to 4.5%.

"On the basis of an updated assessment of the inflation outlook, the dynamics of underlying inflation and the strength of monetary policy transmission, it is now appropriate to moderate the degree of monetary policy tightening after nine months of unchanged interest rates," the euro bank said in a statement.

SHOTLIST:
1. Various from the European Central Bank building;
2. Various from the press conference;
3. Various from the European Central Bank building.