FRANKFURT: Key Euribor bank-to-bank lending rates were unchanged on Tuesday, holding steady ahead of the European Central Bank's policy meeting on Thursday 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 Tuesday, three-month Euribor rates, traditionally the main gauge of unsecured bank-to-bank lending, were unchanged at 0.192 percent.
The six-month rate edged up to 0.326 percent from 0.325 percent while the one-week rate remained unchanged at 0.080 percent. The overnight Eonia rate dipped to 0.066 percent from 0.068 percent.
Dollar-priced bank-to-bank Euribor lending rates were mixed, with three-month rates falling to 0.52083 percent from 0.52333 percent and one-week rates unchanged at 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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