January 28–29 · Published February 19, 2020
Statement·Presser·Minutes·Policy
Jerome H. Powell
January 28–29, 2020 FOMC Minutes
Our reading
The minutes read consistent with the statement because both documents describe the same economic conditions—strong labor market, moderate economic activity, weak business investment and exports, and inflation below 2 percent—and both conclude that maintaining the federal funds rate target range at 1-1/2 to 1-3/4 percent is appropriate to support sustained expansion, strong labor market conditions, and inflation returning to the 2 percent objective.
Our reading compares the minutes of the January 28–29 FOMC meeting with the FOMC statement issued at the end of that meeting, three weeks before the minutes were published.
Vote
- Michelle W. Bowman
- Lael Brainard
- Richard H. Clarida
- Patrick Harker
- Robert S. Kaplan
- Neel Kashkari
- Loretta J. Mester
- Jerome H. Powell
- Randal K. Quarles
- John C. Williams
From the minutes
FOMC minutes
Voting for this action: Jerome H. Powell, John C. Williams, Michelle W. Bowman, Lael Brainard, Richard H. Clarida, Patrick Harker, Robert S. Kaplan, Neel Kashkari, Loretta J. Mester, and Randal K. Quarles.
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 raise the interest rates on required and excess reserve balances to 1.60 percent. Setting the interest rate paid on required and excess reserve balances 10 basis points above the bottom of the target range for the federal funds rate is intended to foster trading in the federal funds market at rates well within the FOMC's target range. The Board of Governors also voted unanimously to approve establishment of the primary credit rate at the existing level of 2.25 percent, effective January 30, 2020.
It was agreed that the next meeting of the Committee would be held on Tuesday-Wednesday, March 17-18, 2020. The meeting adjourned at 9:50 a.m. on January 29, 2020.
What changed from the previous meeting’s minutes
- Household spending description changed from "strong" to "moderate" in the postmeeting statement.
- Inflation objective wording changed from "near" to "returning to" the symmetric 2 percent goal.
- Repo operations extended from at least through January 2020 to at least through April 2020.
- Overnight reverse repo offering rate raised from 1.45 percent to 1.50 percent.
- Interest rates on required and excess reserve balances raised from 1.55 percent to 1.60 percent.
- Voting members changed, with Bullard, Evans, George, and Rosengren replaced by Harker, Kaplan, Kashkari, and Mester.
Summary generated automatically from the two documents.