The European Central Bank said it's plans to withdraw as much as €150 billion from the euro-region money market to help "steer liquidity toward more balanced conditions".
The Frankfurt-based central bank said in a statement that the operation will be offered at a fixed rate of 4 per cent and it will call for bids at 10am today.
Yesterday, the ECB loaned a record €348.6 billion for two weeks to banks to bring down the cost of money at year-end, almost €170 billion more than the bank had initially estimated was needed.
The rate banks charge each other fell to 4.45 per cent from 4.94 per cent, the European Banking Federation said yesterday.
The reluctance to lend money after the collapse of the US subprime market pushed interbank euro rates for two weeks to the highest level in at least six years earlier this week.