ECB should hold steady course until at least autumn: Vasiliauskas

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - The European Central Bank should not discuss whether more policy action is needed until autumn, Governing Council Member Vitas Vasiliauskas said on Wednesday, adding that the bank's arsenal is nonetheless far from empty.

It could even buy new types of assets if needed, he said in an interview with Reuters.

"The current situation is stable with positive perspectives," Vasiliauskas, who also head Lithuania's central bank, said. "So if you ask me what do you think about possible steps during the summer, my answer would be: nothing.

"Let's wait until the autumn, I think; now it is too early to discuss," he said.

Vasiliauskas said inflation may stay negative for several more months, only rising back firmly into positive territory towards the end of the year, but the tendency is positive so the ECB should now focus on implementing already approved measures,

The ECB has cut its deposit rate deep into negative territory and is buying 1.7 trillion euros worth of mainly government debt to push down borrowing costs, kick start growth and boost ultra low inflation.

Still, if action was needed again, the ECB has plenty of tools at its disposal and it could even expand into new asset classes, Vasiliauskas said.

"My personal view is that we can think about new classes of assets, if there will be a need," he said. "The most important factor when we discuss assess classes is related to the direct transmission channel to the real economy."

When asked if equity and property buys would have such direct transmission effect and could be considered, Vasiliauskas said yes.

(Reporting by Balazs Koranyi and Francesco Canepa Editing by Jeremy Gaunt)