January 30–31 · Published March 22, 2001
Statement·Presser·Minutes·Policy
AGAlan GreenspanJanuary 30–31, 2001 FOMC Minutes
Our reading
The minutes are consistent with the statement because both documents describe the Federal Open Market Committee's decision to lower the federal funds rate by 50 basis points to 5-1/2 percent, cite weakened consumer and business confidence, reduced spending, and contained inflation as reasons for the action, and agree that risks are weighted toward economic weakness.
Our reading compares the minutes of the January 30–31 FOMC meeting with the FOMC statement issued at the end of that meeting, three weeks before the minutes were published.
Vote
- Roger W. Ferguson, Jr.
- Edward M. Gramlich
- Alan Greenspan
- Thomas M. Hoenig
- Edward W. Kelley, Jr.
- William J. McDonough
- Laurence H. Meyer
- Cathy E. Minehan
- Michael H. Moskow
- William Poole
From the minutes
FOMC minutes
Footnotes
1 Attended Tuesday session only.
2 Attended portion of meeting relating to a staff study of the Federal Reserve asset portfolio.
3 Attended Wednesday session only.
What changed from the previous meeting’s minutes
- The federal funds rate target was cut from 6 percent to 5.5 percent.
- The January 3 conference call reduced the rate by 50 basis points to 6 percent.
- The balance of risks statement remained tilted toward economic weakness.
- The FOMC voted unanimously to ease policy at both meetings.
- The January 31 meeting included individual economic projections for 2001.
- The FOMC selected Dino Kos as Manager for Domestic and Foreign Operations.
Summary generated automatically from the two documents.