FRANKFURT — Members of the European Central Bank’s Governing Council were unanimous in their belief that government bond purchases were a legitimate tool of monetary policy, even if some thought the time to take that step had not yet arrived, according to an account released Thursday of the January meeting at which the majority decided in favor of an unprecedented stimulus program.
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The Governing Council agreed that the eurozone was not in imminent risk of deflation, even though inflation had sunk into negative territory for the first time since 2009. And some members, who were not identified in the account, argued that there should be clear signs of deflation before beginning government bond purchases.