Federal Reserve officials stuck to their easy-money policy of buying U.S. Treasury bonds and keeping short-term interest rates near zero.
The Fed was restrained in its assessment of the economy. The recovery is continuing, “though at a rate that has been insufficient to bring down unemployment,” the central bank said in a statement at the end of the meeting. Fed officials also reaffirmed that their plan to buy $600 billion in U.S. Treasury debt through June would be subject to regular reviews and may be adjusted depending on how the economy fares.
Many Fed officials believe the policy is working, though results have been mixed at best. Bond yields and the dollar fell in anticipation of the Nov. 3 decision to initiate the program, but both have jumped as stronger economic data and the tax-cut deal led investors to expect more growth and inflation — and to worry about budget deficits.
https://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704694004576019712503334654.html?mod=djemalertNEWS
The Fed’s statement: https://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2010/12/14/fed-statement-following-december-meeting-2