Recital 1

(1)Taking into account the exceptional economic and financial circumstances associated with the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the Governing Council established a new temporary pandemic emergency purchase programme (PEPP) under Decision (EU) 2020/440 of the European Central Bank (ECB/2020/17) ¹ . The PEPP includes all the asset categories eligible under the European Central Bank’s expanded asset purchase programme (APP), which comprises the secondary markets public sector asset purchase programme, the third covered bond purchase programme, the asset-backed securities purchase programme, and the corporate sector purchase programme.