FOMC Minutes: Forward Guidance Can Be Altered

The forward guidance of easy monetary policy through 2014 is “subject to revision” if “significant” improvement is seen in the economy, according to minutes of the most recent Federal Open Market Committee meeting, released Wednesday.

Citing appearance of strengthening in early 2010 and early 2011 that didn’t pan out, and the mild winter, panelists decided to leave “forward guidance unchanged at this meeting,” changing it “only once they were more confident that the medium-term economic outlook or risks to the outlook had changed significantly.”

Some members felt the recovery was gaining “durability,” though others felt it was too soon to determine a permanent trend, since temporary factors have contributed to the growth.

“The incoming information led some participants to become more confident about the durability of the recovery,” the minutes state. “However, others thought it was premature to infer a stronger underlying trend from the recent positive indicators, since those readings may partially reflect the effects of the mild winter weather or other temporary influences.”

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