FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The European Central Bank kept interest rates unchanged at a record low of 1.0 percent yesterday and its chief said the idea of a country such as Greece leaving the euro zone was "absurd".

All 80 economists in a recent Reuters poll had expected rates to remain on hold for the eighth month in a row and all but a handful see the central bank keeping them there well into the second half of the year as it waits for the recovery to firm.

ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet stuck to the central bank's recent view that the post-financial crisis recovery in the euro zone would be gradual and uneven. He also dashed hopes that the ECB would step in if one of the euro's 16-member countries looked in serious economic danger, warning that there would be "no special treatment".

Markets were little changed after the interest rate decision but Trichet's tough line on troubled member nations pushed the cost of insuring Greek debt against default to record levels.

"The Governing Council expects the euro area economy to grow at a moderate pace in 2010, recognising that the recovery process is likely to be uneven and that the outlook remains subject to uncertainty," Trichet told a news conference to explain the central bank's decision.

He expected low inflationary pressure over the medium-term.

"The latest information has also confirmed that, towards the end of '09, euro area economic activity continued to expand," Trichet said.

"However, some of the factors supporting the growth in real GDP are of a temporary nature."

Recent data showed the mood surrounding the economy improved more than expected in December, but unemployment jumped above ten percent, retail sales disappointed and money supply shrank for the first time on record.