FOMC Minutes

Some highlights from the FOMC minutes just released at 2pm ET:
Fed members expressed uncertainty ...

Developments in Financial Markets and the Federal Reserve's Balance Sheet
The Manager of the System Open Market Account reported on recent developments in domestic and foreign financial markets. The Manager also reported on System open market operations in Treasury securities, agency debt, and agency mortgage-backed securities (MBS) since the Committee's August 11-12 meeting. By unanimous vote, the Committee ratified those transactions. There were no open market operations in foreign currencies for the System's account during the intermeeting period. Since the Committee met in August, the Federal Reserve's total assets had risen about $125 billion, on balance, to approximately $2.1 trillion, as the System's purchases of securities exceeded a further decline in usage of the System's credit and liquidity facilities.

The staff briefed the Committee on the current status of the asset purchase programs. Participants noted that the primary influence of the programs is likely through the cumulative effect that ...

The Trading Radar highlights key earnings and economic announcements for tomorrow's trading session:

Before Market Opens:
Economics:
8:30am ET
Import/Export Prices for September
Retail Sales for September - Street expects -2.1%Earnings:
Abbott (NYSE: ABT) - consensus ...

MANCHESTER, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The Federal Reserve System has disclosed to the Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee Inc. that it has gold swap arrangements with foreign banks that it does not want the public to know about. The disclosure, GATA says, contradicts denials provided by the Fed to GATA in 2001 and suggests that the Fed is indeed very much involved in the surreptitious international central bank manipulation of the gold price particularly and the currency markets generally. The Fed's disclosure came this week in a letter to GATA's ...

Developments in Financial Markets and the Federal Reserve's Balance Sheet
The Manager of the System Open Market Account reported on recent developments in domestic and foreign financial markets. The Manager also reported on System open market operations in Treasury securities, agency debt, and agency mortgage-backed securities (MBS) since the Committee's June 23-24 meeting. By unanimous vote, the Committee ratified those transactions. There were no open market operations in foreign currencies for the System's account during the intermeeting period. The Federal Reserve's total assets were about unchanged, on balance, since the Committee met in June, remaining at approximately $2 trillion as the System's purchases of securities were essentially matched by a further decline in usage of the System's credit and liquidity facilities.

Meeting participants again discussed the merits of including agency MBS backed by adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) in the Committee's MBS purchase program: Some thought it would be ...