LONDON — The European Central Bank further cut its bond purchases on Thursday but vowed to continue its unprecedented monetary policy support for the euro zone economy into 2022.

While inflation in the euro area reached a record 4.9% level in November, it is still rising. The new Covid-19 variant of the micron is spread across Europe and has forced many European economies into partial lockdowns.

The ECB, which has adopted a unprecedentedly loose monetary policy to guide the euro area economy through the crisis, is currently more dovish than the Bank of England or the U.S. Federal Reserve.

With a possible total of 1.85 trillion euro ($2.19 trillion), it’s Pandemic Emergency Purchase Programme. In tandem with PEPP the Asset Purchase Programme or APP has maintained a steady pace at 20 billion euros per month.