Governing guidance issued helicopter money cancellation – FAZ – Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung

headquarters of the European Central Bank in Frankfurt.

Leading members of the European Central Bank (ECB) are against the idea of ​​distributing direct cash gifts to citizens to fueling inflation. About such “helicopter money” will not even discussed, said ECB chief economist Peter Praet on Thursday. The same horn blew ECB Vice Vitor Constantio in the European Parliament: “This is not on the table in any shape or form.”

ECB president Mario Draghi had such a windfall for consumers in March ” called very interesting idea “. After a lively discussion broke out about such gifts. Among economists helicopter money is considered as a last resort of monetary policy – when all other conventional and unconventional instruments have been exhausted. The Swedish bank Nordea had recently launched a sum of 1300 euros this week, which could distribute the central bank directly to the citizens of the 19 countries of the euro area.

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Meanwhile erklärte Draghi in the ECB’s annual report, also in 2016 will be a tough year for the central bank. The outlook for the global economy are uncertain There is further pressure on inflation. In addition to questions presented in terms of the future direction of Europe, and the resilience of the continent “to new shocks.” In the environment is a commitment to the mandate to ensure price stability, “a trust anchor”.

Praet said in Frankfurt that the ECB has still plenty of arrows in the quiver. “If it should come to further adverse shocks, we could adjust our measures again to counter the strength of the headwind.” In this case, the possible side effects are taken into account. That inflation should remain low, does not lie in an ineffective monetary policy, but the fact that the economy had been taken in the meantime, new attenuating influences.

The Euro-guards had recently further relaxed its monetary policy, the continued sluggish economy to heat and to fire from their point of view undesirably low inflation. She lowered inter alia its three main interest rates and expanded its in Germany controversial bond purchase program. The ECB aims at inflation as one of just two percent. Of these it is however currently far. In March, consumer prices were down by as much as 0.1 percent.