d UPDATE:ECB Weber:Crisis Response Can't Stop Econ Downturn

BRUSSELS -(Dow Jones)- Europe's response to the economic crisis can only mitigate the recession, not prevent it, European Central Bank governing council member Axel Weber said Sunday. Weber defended the ECB's efforts, saying criticism that it has been slower to act than the U.S. Federal Reserve and the Bank of England is unjustified. The Federal Reserve and the Bank of England have both trimmed their main interest rates to almost zero, while the ECB's key rate is currently 1.5%. Weber said that with the ECB's main rate at "1.5% and heading down," the central bank has moved appropriately to boost the euro-zone economy. He declined to discuss details of the ECB's upcoming rate decisions, but repeated an earlier statement that the bank has "room to maneuver." Weber warned that the ECB will act quickly if inflation re-emerges in the euro zone. Inflation topped 4% in the region last summer, prompting the ECB to hold its key rate at 4.25%, while other central banks slashed rates to boost economic activity. Weber echoed ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet's statement that the bank is ready to consider additional measures to help the euro-zone economy. European business groups have asked the ECB to start buying commercial paper, a step the U.S. Federal Reserve first took in October. Weber declined to discuss specific plans, saying only that some "unconventional" ideas are under discussion. Some aspects of the economic downturn are beneficial, particularly after years of excessive consumption, Weber told a conference in Brussels hosted by the German Marshall Fund of the United States. "Part of the reaction we see now in the business cycle is not what we want to correct," he said. Weber noted that savings rates are rising in response to the economic downturn. He said he expects a continued climb in savings rates in the U.S. and the euro zone.