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'Room to lower rate'

European Central Bank Governing Council member Nout Wellink (above) said the bank can make additional cuts to its benchmark rate and is considering other measures to spur lending and boost the economy.

"There is some room for lowering the interest rate," Wellink, who also heads the Dutch central bank, said in an interview after a lecture in Leiden, The Netherlands. "There is also room for other measures, on which we will decide soon," he said, declining to specify what action the bank might take.