ECB sets out communication guidelines

The ECB has set out guidelines for how board members should interact with the private sector, after a disagreement over information divulged by one of its board members at a private event earlier this year.

In a press release on Tuesday, the ECB said it was important for board members to continue to talk to a variety of audiences in order to help them "understand the dynamics of the economy and financial markets and its broader societal context". 

However, they will now be subject to strict guidelines and in particular will not be allowed to make financially sensitive remarks when it could not be published simultaneously or be reported in real time by the media. And in cases where they are speaking at non-public events, they should not divulge any market-sensitive information. 

It also reiterated that any speeches given in the seven days before the ECB's scheduled monetary policy meetings should not contain any remarks that could "influence expectations about forthcoming monetary policy decisions", suggests Barclays.