European Central Bank interest rates
The Governing Council of the European Central Bank normally sets three key interest rates for the euro area every six weeks:
- the main refinancing rate;
- the marginal lending rate;
- the deposit rate.
The main refinancing rate is the rate on the main refinancing operations, which normally provide the bulk of liquidity to the banking system.
The marginal lending rate is the interest rate on the Eurosystem's marginal lending facility, which credit institutions may use to obtain overnight credit from the Eurosystem.
The deposit rate is the interest rate paid on the liquidity that credit institutions may deposit overnight with the Eurosystem.