January 30–31 · Published February 21, 2018
Statement·Presser·Minutes·Policy
JYJanet L. YellenJanuary 30–31, 2018 FOMC Minutes
Our reading
The minutes are consistent with the statement because the minutes detail the FOMC's discussion and vote to maintain the target range for the federal funds rate at 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 percent, reflecting the same economic assessment and policy decision summarized in the statement.
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
- Thomas I. Barkin
- Raphael W. Bostic
- Lael Brainard
- William C. Dudley
- Loretta J. Mester
- Jerome H. Powell
- Randal K. Quarles
- John C. Williams
- Janet L. Yellen
From the minutes
FOMC minutes
Voting for this action: Janet L. Yellen, William C. Dudley, Thomas I. Barkin, Raphael W. Bostic, Lael Brainard, Loretta J. Mester, Jerome H. Powell, Randal K. Quarles, and John C. Williams.
Voting against this action: None.
Consistent with the Committee's decision to leave the target range for the federal funds rate unchanged, the Board of Governors voted unanimously to leave the interest rates on required and excess reserve balances unchanged at 1-1/2 percent and voted unanimously to approve establishment of the primary credit rate (discount rate) at the existing level of 2 percent.5
It was agreed that the next meeting of the Committee would be held on Tuesday-Wednesday, March 20-21, 2018. The meeting adjourned at 10:50 a.m. on January 31, 2018.
What changed from the previous meeting’s minutes
- The FOMC voted to maintain the target range at 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 percent, after raising it 25 basis points in December.
- The vote was unanimous in January, with no dissents, versus two dissents in December.
- The postmeeting statement changed from "gradual increases" to "further gradual increases" in the federal funds rate.
- Core PCE price inflation rose to 1.5 percent in December, up 0.2 percentage point from the summer low.
- Participants noted financial conditions had eased significantly over the intermeeting period, citing a lower dollar and higher equity prices.
- Several participants marked up near-term growth forecasts, citing tax cuts and stronger global outlook.
Summary generated automatically from the two documents.