That represented a net addition of central bank lending to the banks of 191bn euros (because some banks converted shorter term ECB loans into three-year loans).
Whether it's the European central bank lending trillions to European banks, or a third bout of quantitative easing by the Federal Reserve, it feels, to many, like these institutions are simply kicking the can down the road - deferring the moment of truth.
But whether the idea of Italy's debt being "mutualised" (or shared with German taxpayers) via some kind of shield provided by the IMF will appeal to the German parliament and German central bank - which are set against any such central-bank lending to any eurozone member state - seems highly doubtful.
The European Central Bank is lending the banks as much as they want at low rates.
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None of the big New Zealand banks currently meets the new threshold, and because longer-term borrowing is dearer, the central bank expects lending costs to increase by 10-20 basis points.
Ten years ago branch networks were decided by the Bank of Italy, the central bank, lending was tightly regulated and two-thirds of the banking system was in the hands of central or local government.
What do I mean by that, given that the European Central Bank is lending unlimited sums to eurozone banks, to replace the money that these banks are no longer able to borrow on markets in the normal way?
On Thursday, the European Central Bank cut its official deposit rate for overnight lending to the central bank by 50 basis points, to 1.0%, below its 2.5% benchmark rate, in an attempt to wean banks off the safety of its vaults and thus stimulate interbank lending.
Taiwan's central bank has been considering lending to the central banks of Indonesia and Thailand.
In March, the central bank cut its lending rate by a quarter percentage point, which was its second rate reduction in 2013.
Several officials at the central bank have said lending should be curbed.
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Banks were, in effect, being charged for keeping money at the central bank rather than lending it out to consumers and businesses to boost consumer spending and growth.
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The German export association BGA has warned of a "massive credit squeeze" by late summer while Business Europe, the region's main business lobby, told the European Central Bank that bank lending desperately needs to be improved.
Under this system, called Target2, one consequence of businesses and households taking their money out of the bank accounts of the deficit countries, such as Greece, Italy and Spain, is that the German central bank ends up lending vast sums to the central banks of those deficit countries.
The European Central Bank is barred from lending to governments (though it is doing a lot to sustain euro-zone banks).
The local markets opened higher but fell immediately after the central bank reduced its key lending rate by a quarter of a percentage point.
Borrowing costs have surged as the central bank raised its policy lending rate 13 times between early 2010 and late 2011 to control inflation.
In Beijing, central bank officials loosened bank lending requirements.
However, food inflation has been hovering close to double digits for over two years, driving up overall inflation and crimping the space the central bank has to cut lending rates to stimulate economic growth.
And since the European Central Bank and the national central banks insist on lending only in return for collateral, there is a danger that banks would shortly run out of collateral of sufficient quality.
The central bank cut its policy lending rate by a quarter percentage point in late January it was the second rate reduction in four years but also cautioned that it had limited space for further policy easing.
The decision helps companies that need to borrow -- the central bank will essentially be lending to them -- but it fails to directly entice money market funds and other private-sector investors into buying the securities.
India's central bank cut its key lending rate by a quarter of a percentage point to help revive economic expansion, but it warned that higher inflation and a wide current-account deficit may leave little room for further easing.
MUMBAI India's central bank cut its key lending rate by a quarter of a percentage point Tuesday in a widely expected move to help revive economic expansion, but it warned that higher inflation and a wide current-account deficit may leave little room for further easing.
Indeed, the central bank tried to encourage more lending even after the currency fell, imposing quotas of 8% credit growth for 1998.
Only recently have the inflation levels eased below 4%, prompting the Chinese central bank to cut its key lending rate in June.
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The reviews will look at the central bank's emergency-lending operations in 2008-09, its inflation-forecasting record and the system for providing money to banks.
The Bundesbank believes that minimum reserve requirements give a central bank tighter control over bank lending and help to smooth out money-market interest rates.
The European Central Bank could cut its benchmark lending rate from a record low of 0.75 as soon as Thursday because the euro area's economy remains stagnant.
Figures from the European Central Bank this week showed that lending to the private sector declined by 0.3% year on year in September, the first drop since records began.
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