Eurozone bank buys record €22bn in bonds to contain euro crisis

The European Central Bank last week spent a record €22bn buying euro-zone government bonds in a bid to prevent the eurozone debt crisis spreading, a move that is likely to fuel debate on the creation of eurobonds.

The buying spree represented the most the central bank has spent since it first began bond-buying in May last year in response to the Greek debt crisis.

It also shows the scale of the challenge faced by the bank in keeping down the borrowing costs of Italy and Spain, the...