The results of the March FOMC meeting brought few changes, as expected

The results of the March FOMC meeting brought few changes, as expected. Rates are being held steady and are expected to remain at rock bottom until sometime in 2015. The Fed is once again reducing its bond purchases by $10 billion, also as expected. Total bond purchases are down to $55 billion a month after this third round of tapering. The committee believes the US economy is doing well enough to support ongoing improvement in labor market conditions but admits that bad winter weather slowed growth. The most important item to come out of this statement is the abandonment of the 6.5% unemployment threshold as a guideline for raising short-term rates. As the mainstream unemployment rate is not an accurate depiction of the labor market, the Fed will be using other variables to gauge economic conditions. (VIEW LINK)