FRANKFURT: Key Euribor bank-to-bank lending rates were unchanged for a second day running on Wednesday, holding steady ahead of the European Central Bank's Thursday policy meeting at which no change in official rates is expected.
Economists polled by Reuters forecast the ECB will keep the main interest rate on hold at 0.75 percent this week, but they could not agree on the chances of a cut in the next few months due to a murky economic outlook.
The ECB kept rates on hold last month despite new forecasts suggesting the euro area economy will contract in 2013.
Comments from ECB President Mario Draghi, saying there had been a "wide discussion" about rates, had fuelled expectation shortly after December's policy meeting that the bank could cut rates further. But expectations of a cut subsequently faded after hawkish comments from other policymakers.
On Wednesday, three-month Euribor rates, traditionally the main gauge of unsecured bank-to-bank lending, were unchanged at 0.192 percent.
The six-month rate was also unchanged, at 0.326 percent, and the one-week rate was steady at 0.080 percent. The overnight Eonia rate edged up to 0.067 percent from 0.066 percent.
Dollar-priced bank-to-bank Euribor lending rates were mixed, with three-month rates firming to 0.52167 percent from 0.52083 percent and one-week rates dipping to 0.36417 percent from 0.36500 percent.
Euribor rates are fixed daily by the Banking Federation of the European Union (FBE) shortly after 0900 GMT.
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