The monetary policy of the European Central Bank

The objective of this thesis is to analyse and to evaluate the monetary policy of the European Central Bank (ECB) since the establishment of the European monetary union until the financial crisis in 2008. The thesis is divided into three parts. The first part introduces operating principles of monetary policy, which types of monetary policy exist and which instruments it uses. The second part deals with the process of its establishment and its formal requirements. In the third part, the analytical one, is presented the ECB's monetary policy implementation scheme and the single periods of reducing/raising of key ECB interest rates depending on economic and monetary developments in the euro area are analysed. By virtue of the analysis the ECB's monetary policy efficiency is being evaluated in author's view. The conclusion of this part contains changes in monetary policy instruments during the financial crisis