FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — A member of the European Central Bank's rate-setting committee has criticized the bank's decision to leave its bond-buying stimulus program running without a clear end date.
Jens Weidmann, who sits on the ECB's 25-member governing council as head of Germany's national central bank, the Bundesbank, said in the text of a Friday speech in Paris that "in my view, however, a clear end of the net purchases would have been indicated."
Weidmann repeated his criticism of the purchases, saying they "erase the boundary between monetary policy and fiscal policy" — that is, that they support government borrowing as well as lowering market interest rates.
ECB President Mario Draghi said Thursday there was a "large majority" in the governing council in favor of purchases through September 2018 and longer if needed.
Subscribe to Closing Arguments
Sign up for new weekly newsletter Closing Arguments to get the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and hot cases and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world.