December 2012 FOMC Meeting Minutes: Discussing Quantitative Easing

Econintersect: This is the meeting which culminated in QE4. The 11 December 2012 meeting statement presented the actions taken. This post covers the discussion during this FOMC meeting between the members.  It should be noted that despite all the quantitative easing, the Fed's Balance Sheet (which we report on weekly) - still has not exceeded the peak value achieved in mid-February 2012.  Since 11 December, the balance sheet has contracted $10 billion. It appears that the FOMC members believed the economy is expanding moderately, and were worried that the Fiscal Cliff debate was muting demand.  The most interesting discussion was on the potential effects of the QE programs: With regard to the possible costs and risks of purchases, a number of participants expressed the concern that additional purchases could complicate the Committee's efforts to eventually withdraw mo...