EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK

Euro zone assets recovered some poise on Tuesday as markets bet the European Union would take steps to restore confidence in struggling members like Greece at a summit this week.

European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet is cutting short a trip to Australia to attend a special European Union summit, prompting market speculation initiatives are in the works to help resolve Greece's debt problems.

Stock index futures rose on Tuesday, buoyed by hopes that European Union nations could bail out debt-burdened Greece.

European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet is changing his plans to leave Australia and return to Europe purely because of logistics, an ECB spokesman said on Tuesday.

It is vital that Greece meets its stated goals for cutting its budget deficit and steps announced by the government this week are encouraging, European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said on Thursday.

U.S. stock markets fell in early trading on Thursday, tracking Asian and European markets as worries over European sovereign debt intensified and concerns arose after a disappointing U.S. unemployment claims report was released this morning.

U.S. federal fund futures rose for the second day in a row on Friday as investors continued to push back expectations for the timing of a Federal Reserve interest rate hike on the back of a benign inflation report.

Greece launched an ambitious three-year plan to slash its huge budget deficit on Thursday but failed to convince financial markets it can deliver on the cuts and put a swift end to its fiscal crisis.

The European Central Bank chief is cautious about the prospect of European and worldwide economic recovery while the Philadelphia Fed Bank President is more optimistic about the US economy.

The European Central Bank kept benchmark interest rates unchanged at a record low of 1.0 percent on Thursday with the ECB expected to remain in a holding pattern given uneven growth and low inflation.

Looser foreign exchange policies in emerging Asia, particularly China, would benefit everyone but the desire for change may have diminished post-crisis, European Central Bank policymaker Lorenzo Bini Smaghi said on Tuesday.

In October this year, Reserve bank of India triggered a new wave among central banks across the globe, resulting in huge purchases of gold by them. With India leading the way with a 200 tonne gold purchase from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), other banks also followed suit by purchasing the yellow metal in bulk.

Banks must provide sufficient credit and governments in the euro zone must reign in public finances to support a global economic recovery in 2010, the President of the European Central Bank said on Sunday.

Moody's Investors Service downgraded Greece's government bond ratings to A2 from A1 on Tuesday, noting a negative outlook for the nation unless the government can follow through on its plan by increasing tax revenues and/or reining in expenditure.

To all extents and purposes, 2009 is over for investors and the coming week will be dominated by the issues of 2010.

Rock-bottom interest rates are luring banks into taking risky bets and central banks should be alert to the negative effects of loose monetary policy on financial stability, a high-profile study showed.

The European Central Bank will start to unwind its crisis support for the euro zone economy this month but made clear on Thursday these moves are not meant to signal a coming rise in benchmark interest rates.

The European Central Bank kept rates at a record low of 1 percent as expected on Thursday, leaving markets firmly focused on how it plans to handle the delicate process of phasing out its financial crisis support.

The European Central Bank kept its main interest rate on hold at a record low of 1 percent for the seventh month running on Thursday, as expected by economists. Markets are now turning their attention to President Jean-Claude Trichet's news conference at 1330 GMT, when he will release new staff economic forecasts and is widely expected to give further details on how the ECB will start phasing out...

The European Central Bank is set to begin the delicate process of phasing out its financial crisis support on Thursday, backed by new staff forecasts which should show greater economic optimism.

The coming week should signal whether a year of voracious risk appetite on financial markets is going to end with a bang, a whimper or, quite possibly, a thundering great clunk.