THE European Central Bank (ECB) is considering buying corporate bonds on the secondary market and may decide on the matter as soon as December with a view to begin purchases early next year, sources familiar with the situation told Reuters.

    European shares rallied on the news, led by banks and shares in peripheral countries. The euro fell more than half a cent against the dollar and credit indices tightened sharply.

    Policymakers are desperate to revive the eurozone economy, which is barely growing and dogged by low inflation of 0.3 percent, far below the ECB’s target of just below 2 percent.

    The ECB has already carried out work on corporate bond buying, which would widen out the private-sector asset-buying program it began Monday. It is hoping these measures will foster lending to businesses and thereby support the eurozone economy.

    “The pressure in this direction is high,” said one person familiar with the work inside the ECB, speaking on condition of anonymity.

    An ECB spokesman, however, said of such purchases: “The Governing Council has taken no such decision.”

    The ECB has already cut interest rates to record lows, offered banks cheap loans and begun buying covered bonds, which are backed by high-quality assets. It also plans to start buying asset-backed securities, or bundled loans, later this year.(SD-Agencies)