Draghi Mocks Speculation About Possible Early Exit From ECB QE Program

European Central Bank President Mario Draghi on Wednesday said he was surprised by speculation about a potential early exit from the central bank's recently implemented program of asset purchases, which is scheduled to run until at least September 2016. Draghi said an ECB colleague compared the speculation to a marathon runner questioning whether he would continue the race after the first kilometer. Draghi said the ECB program is running smoothly. He said borrowing conditions in the euro zone have seen a notable improvement and that the ECB's measures are feeding through to the real economy.