REUTERS/Pascal RossignolLONDON, Jan 27 (Reuters) - The European Central Bank (ECB) on Friday rejected calls from Europe's banks to ease capital rules to boost lending and put them on an equal footing with U.S. rivals. "Policymakers should redouble their efforts to complete the banking and capital markets unions," the report said, referring to EU projects to deepen its capital market and create a more competitive cross-border banking market. "The largest global European banks have even slightly lower requirements than their counterparts across the Atlantic," an ECB spokesperson said. "It is also questionable that lower capital requirements would lead to higher lending: what is proven is that low levels of capital lead banks to abruptly reduce lending in a crisis, thus deepening the adverse impact on the economy," the ECB said. The EU is finalising the remaining leg of global bank capital rules that were written in response to the financial crisis, with temporary waivers from some elements in the teeth of ECB opposition.

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