EU's highest court backs 2012 bond-buying plan

Luxembourg

THE European Central Bank's (ECB) 2012 bond-buying programme won the backing of the European Union's highest court, expanding ECB president Mario Draghi's crisis-fighting arsenal.

The EU Court of Justice (ECJ), in a ruling in Luxembourg on Tuesday, said that the Outright Monetary Transactions (OMT) programme doesn't exceed the powers of the ECB in relation to monetary policy.

The ECB announced details of the OMT plan in September 2012 as bets multiplied that the euro area would break apart and after Mr Draghi's promise to do "whatever it takes" to save the currency. The calming of financial ma…