Bank deposits at ECB rise, bond buying progresses

The amount of cash deposited by banks at the European Central Bank inched up, data showed onTuesday.

The ECB's 60 billion euro covered bond buying programme also continued to make progress. The total value of bonds purchased to-date reached 17.741 billion euros, up from 17.352 billion euros. It leaves the ECB almost 30 percent of the way through its plan.

The ECB said commercial banks deposited 147.218 billion euros at the ECB overnight, compared to 144.788 billion previously. In contrast, 206 million was borrowed by banks overnight, up from 85 million euros.

The amounts parked at the ECB's deposit facility have been high since it flooded money markets with almost half a trillion euros in the first of three planned injections of one-year funds at the end of June.

Deposits have topped 100 billion euros since the ECB pumpeda further 75 billion euros of one-year money into the system in the second instalment at the beginning of the month.

The ECB and the 16 euro zone national central banks are buying euro-denominated covered bonds -- debt backed by a pool of assets such as mortgage loans that remain on the issuing bank's balance sheet -- over the next year, from both primary and secondary markets.