BRUSSELS, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- The nomination of Portuguese central banker Vitor Constancio as vice president of the European Central Bank (ECB) was endorsed on Tuesday at a monthly meeting of finance ministers of the European Union (EU).

Constancio is to succeed Greek Lucas Papademos, whose term of office expires on May 31.

As a member of the ECB governing council, Constancio was nominated as ECB vice president at a meeting of finance ministers of the 16-member Eurozone on Monday.

The appointment is going to be endorsed by the European Parliament and finally ratified by EU leaders at a meeting next month.

Constancio has been serving as his country's central banker since 2000 and won a second term in 2006.

The ECB is the central bank for Europe's single currency, the euro. Its main task is to maintain the euro's purchasing power and thus price stability in the euro area.