미국 연준 “3차 양적완화 시행”…FOMC 전문

미국 연방준비제도(Fed., 이하 연준)는 13일(현지시간) 모기지담보부증권(MBS) 매입에 의한 3차 양적완화(QE3)를 실시한다고 발표했다.

연준은 이날 2일 간의 연방공개시장위원회(FOMC) 후 성명을 통해 14일부터 매월 400억달러 규모의 MBS를 매입한다고 밝혔다.

연준은 또한 효과가 없을 경우 추가 매입을 지속하겠다는 방침도 나타냈다. 지난 6월에 6개월 연장을 결정한 오퍼레이션 트위스트도 QE3와 병행해 실시한다.

장기 금리를 억제해 경기 영역이 넓은 주택 시장을 활성화하고, 고용 침체를 근거로 추가 완화가 필요하다고 판단했다는 설명이다.

연준은 현재 0~0.25%인 이례적인 저금리 기조(exceptionally low levels)는 적어도 2015년 중반까지 유지할 것이라고 밝혔다.

다음은 이같은 내용을 담은 연준의 성명 전문이다.

“Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in August suggests that economic activity has continued to expand at a moderate pace in recent months. Growth in employment has been slow, and the unemployment rate remains elevated. Household spending has continued to advance, but growth in business fixed investment appears to have slowed. The housing sector has shown some further signs of improvement, albeit from a depressed level. Inflation has been subdued, although the prices of some key commodities have increased recently. Longer-term inflation expectations have remained stable.

Consistent with its statutory mandate, the Committee seeks to foster maximum employment and price stability. The Committee is concerned that, without further policy accommodation, economic growth might not be strong enough to generate sustained improvement in labor market conditions. Futhermore, strains in global financial markets continue to pose significant downside risks to the economic outlook. The Committee also anticipates that inflation over the medium term likely wouldl run at or below its 2-percent objective.

To support a stronger economic recovery and to help ensure that inflation, over time, is at the rate most consistent with its dual mandate, the Committee agreed today to increase policy accommodation by purchasing additional agency mortgage-backed securities at a pace of $40 billion per month. The Committee also will continue through the end of the year its program to extend the average maturing of its holdings of securities as announced in June, and it is maintaining its existing policy of reinvesting principal payments from its holdings of agency debt and agency mortgage-backed securities in agency mortgage-backed securities. These actions, which together will increase the Committee’s holdings of longer term securities by about $85 billion each month through the end of the year, should put downward pressure on longer term interest rates, support mortgage markets, and to help make broader financial conditions more accommodative.

The Committee will closely monitor incoming information on economic and financial developments in coming months. If the outlook for the labor market does not improve substantially, the Committee will continue its purchases of agency mortgage-backed securities, undertake additional asset purchases, and employ its other policy tools as appropriate until such improvement is achieved in a context of price stability. In determining the size, pace, and composition of its asset purchases, the Committee will, as always, take appropriate account of the likely efficacy and costs of such purchases.

To support continued progress toward maximum employment and price stability, the Committee expects that a highly accommodative stance of monetary policy will remain appropriate for considerable time after the economic recovery strengthens. In particular, the Committee also decided today to keep the target range for the federal funds rate at 0 to 1/4 percent and currently anticipates that exceptionally low levels for the federal funds rate are likely to be warranted at least through mid 2015.

Voting for the FOMC monetary policy action were: Ben S. Bernanke, Chairman; William C. Dudley, Vice Chairman; Elizabeth A. Duke; Dennis P. Lockhart; Sandra Pianalto; Jerome H. Powell; Sarah Bloom Raskin; Jeremy C. Stein; Daniel K. Tarullo; John C. Williams; and Janet L. Yellen. Voting against the action was Jeffrey M. Lacker, who opposed additional asset purchases and prreferred to omit the description of the time period over which exceptionally low levels for the federal funds rate are likely to be warranted.”