ECB President Christine Lagarde said the bank's management committee was discussing the biggest monetary policy reform in nearly 20 years and had made "good progress".

The management committee held its first offline meeting over the weekend since the outbreak. The discussions in Tawnus, Germany, are aimed at adjusting the ECB's tools for the 21st century, setting new inflation targets and better economic measures, and agreeing on how to deal with issues such as climate change and inequality.

"I am glad that we were able to have in-depth discussions at the retreat and made good progress in shaping the specific characteristics of future monetary policy strategies," Lagarde said in a statement published on the ECB website.

The results of the discussions are expected before the ECB's annual forum on September 28-29.