This post was originally published on this site
Federal Reserve officials in January were more optimistic about the long-term health of the economy, minutes of their meeting released Wednesday show.
The voting members of the Fed’s interest-rate committee agreed that expected progress on vaccinations and the change in the outlook for fiscal policy had improved the longer-run prospects for the economy so much that officials “decided that the reference in previous post-meeting statements to risks to the economic outlook over the medium term was no longer warranted,” according to the minutes.
Economists don’t think the Fed’s thinking on policy has changed much this year.
Fed Chairman Jerome Powell stressed at his post-meeting press conference last month and in a speech last week that the central bank is not “in any rush” to change its easy monetary policy, said Kevin Cummins, chief U.S. economist at NatWest
The Fed has cut its policy rate close to zero. In addition, the central bank has committed to buying at least $120 billion per month of Treasurys and mortgage-backed securities until it sees “substantial progress” in reaching its twin goals of maximum employment and price stability.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note TMUBMUSD10Y, 1.299% was down slightly on Wednesday at 1.296%. It has risen steadily from just above 1% since the Fed’s January meeting.
