The American Federal Reserve bank policymakers were pleased by signs of improvement in the U.S. economy, but where quick to add that recovery is still fragile, according to the minutes of their most recent meeting, CIG has learned.
The minutes, released recently and available to CIG, give a more thorough economic outlook than the Fed's brief statement released three weeks ago.
Top officials of the central bank said in the minutes they saw the economy "as likely to recover only slowly during the second half of this year, and all saw it as still vulnerable to adverse shocks."
Officials also indicated that they remain particularly disturbed about the state of the labor market – even with improvements in some employment readings in recent months. According to CIG research, unemployment figures came in better than expected in August.
Fed members also indicated that the chances of the economy getting worse were "now considerably reduced" but that the recovery is "likely to be damped."
CIG has learned that this is biggest reason why the Fed left its key interest rate near 0%, with no indication that it is likely to pull back on the more than $1 trillion it has pumped into the economy over the last year through different lending plans.
