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FOMC Minutes Make No Mention Of Rate Cut Debate

FED
  • (MNI) - Minutes from the Federal Reserve’s December meeting released Wednesday did not mention any discussion about reducing interest rates later this year even though policymakers penciled in a median three rate cuts for 2024 in their quarterly projections.
  • “In their submitted projections, almost all participants indicated that, reflecting the improvements in their inflation outlooks, their baseline projections implied that a lower target range for the federal funds rate would be appropriate by the end of 2024,” the minutes said.
  • The Fed left interest rates on hold at a 22-year high of 5.25%-5.5% last month, and offered the strongest indication to date that it was likely done raising rates for this cycle.
  • “Members generally viewed the addition of the word 'any' to this sentence as appropriately relaying their judgment that the target range for the federal funds rate was likely now at or near its peak for this policy tightening cycle while leaving open the possibility of further increases in the target range if these were warranted,” the minutes said in reference to the statement's new language on forward guidance.

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