ECB says it stands ready to adjust all measures against coronavirus shock

The European Central Bank (ECB) on Wednesday said that it will continue to monitor the economic consequences of the coronavirus and that it stands ready to adjust all of its measures in addition to the policy measures it decided last week.

"The ECB stands ready to adjust all of its measures, as appropriate, should this be needed to safeguard liquidity conditions in the banking system and to ensure the smooth transmission of its monetary policy in all jurisdictions," the central bank said in a statement.

The statement was a response to the remarks of Robert Holzmann, the Austrian central bank chief and ECB policymaker, who reportedly told a press conference in Vienna on Monday that the ECB will intervene in government bond markets if needed.

The ECB rolled out a comprehensive policy package, but without a rate cut, on Thursday to support the euro zone economy against the coronavirus shock.

The measures include additional net asset purchases of 120 billion euros (132 billion U.S. dollars) and longer-term refinancing operations to inject liquidity into the financial system.

On Sunday, the ECB announced that it had joined five major central banks, including the U.S. Federal Reserve, in a coordinated action to enhance the provision of liquidity via the standing U.S. dollar liquidity swap line arrangements.