FOMC statement of March 15, 2011
This statement of the Federal Open Market Committee, compared sentence by sentence with the scheduled statement before it: what changed in the text, and how the Committee voted.
In short
The Federal Open Market Committee released this statement on March 15, 2011. Compared with the previous scheduled statement of January 26, 2011: 5 sentences changed, 4 were added, 3 were removed, and 6 stayed the same. In words: 113 added, 84 removed. The vote on this statement: Unanimous. On the January 26, 2011 statement: Unanimous.
FOMC statement · March 15, 2011
Changed sentences against the previous scheduled statement (January 26, 2011)
6 unchanged · 5 changed · 4 added · 3 removed · words +113 / −84
- January 26, 2011
- Unanimous.
- March 15, 2011
- Unanimous.
Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in December confirms January suggests that the economic recovery is continuing on a firmer footing, though at a rate that has been insufficient to bring about a significant improvement and overall conditions in the labor market conditions appear to be improving gradually.
Growth in household spending picked up late last year, but remains constrained by high unemployment, modest income growth, lower housing wealth, and tight credit.
Business spending on equipment and software is rising, while investment in nonresidential structures is still weak.
Employers remain reluctant to add to payrolls.
Household spending and business investment in equipment and software continue to expand.
However, investment in nonresidential structures is still weak, and the housing sector continues to be depressed.
Commodity prices have risen significantly since the summer, and concerns about global supplies of crude oil have contributed to a sharp run-up in oil prices in recent weeks.
Although commodity prices have risen Nonetheless, longer-term inflation expectations have remained stable, and measures of underlying inflation have been trending downward subdued.
Currently, the unemployment rate is remains elevated, and measures of underlying inflation are continue to be somewhat low, relative to levels that the Committee judges to be consistent, over the longer run, with its dual mandate.
The recent increases in the prices of energy and other commodities are currently putting upward pressure on inflation.
The Committee expects these effects to be transitory, but it will pay close attention to the evolution of inflation and inflation expectations.
Although The Committee anticipates continues to anticipate a gradual return to higher levels of resource utilization in a context of price stability, progress toward its objectives has been disappointingly slow.
Show the 6 unchanged sentences
Consistent with its statutory mandate, the Committee seeks to foster maximum employment and price stability.
To promote a stronger pace of economic recovery and to help ensure that inflation, over time, is at levels consistent with its mandate, the Committee decided today to continue expanding its holdings of securities as announced in November.
In particular, the Committee is maintaining its existing policy of reinvesting principal payments from its securities holdings and intends to purchase $600 billion of longer-term Treasury securities by the end of the second quarter of 2011.
The Committee will regularly review the pace of its securities purchases and the overall size of the asset-purchase program in light of incoming information and will adjust the program as needed to best foster maximum employment and price stability.
The Committee will maintain the target range for the federal funds rate at 0 to 1/4 percent and continues to anticipate that economic conditions, including low rates of resource utilization, subdued inflation trends, and stable inflation expectations, are likely to warrant exceptionally low levels for the federal funds rate for an extended period.
The Committee will continue to monitor the economic outlook and financial developments and will employ its policy tools as necessary to support the economic recovery and to help ensure that inflation, over time, is at levels consistent with its mandate.
Source: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System — the statement on federalreserve.gov · January 26, 2011
How to read this page
The page sets this statement of the Federal Open Market Committee next to the scheduled statement before it, sentence by sentence. The Fed’s sentences are shown as published, in English.
In a changed sentence, the words that were dropped are struck through and the new words are underlined. A sentence found only in the newer statement is marked as added; one found only in the older statement, as removed. Sentences that did not change are collapsed.
The counts say how many sentences fall into each of those groups, and how many words were added and removed. They count edits; they do not weigh them.
The vote lines show how the Committee voted on each statement and who voted against, as the statement itself reports it.
The comparison is made by a fixed rule, not by a model, and it reads nothing into the text.
The Fed’s text is shown in its original English and is not translated. This page only shows what changed in the text; it is not a reading of direction, tone or risk, and it is not part of the MVIE score. MVIE Pro is independent research and is not affiliated with the Federal Reserve.