1st LD: ECB keeps interest rates unchanged

FRANKFURT, March 8 (Xinhua) -- The European Central Bank (ECB) on Thursday decided to keep key interest rates unchanged at the monetary policy meeting here.

"The interest rate on the main refinancing operations and the interest rates on the marginal lending facility and the deposit facility will remain unchanged at 0.00 percent, 0.25 percent and -0.4 percent respectively," said an ECB statement.

The ECB also repeated that its bond purchase program will continue as planned. Enditem