LONDON: German Bunds jumped at the open on Thursday after the Federal Reserve said the US economy still needed support, with the European Central Bank also expected to stick to its accommodative policy later in the day.
The Fed offered no hint that it is planning to reduce its bond-buying stimulus at its next meeting in September and slightly downgraded its view of the recovery.
The ECB, which holds a monetary policy meeting this session, is expected to reinforce its message that interest rates are on hold for an extended period, even though recent data has shown signs of a tentative euro zone recovery.
"The Fed was more dovish than expected. Obviously we are expecting Draghi to be dovish today," one trader said, adding this would further support the market.
German Bund futures were up 57 ticks at 142.94.
The trader said markets should overlook growing political risks in Italy and Spain, though these could come back to haunt them after September's German elections.
Spain's Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy will appear before parliament to face questions over a growing corruption scandal, while in Italy, a tax fraud case against former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi continues.
Spain plans to issue between 2 billion euros and 3 billion euros of bonds maturing in 2016 and 2018 later this session.
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