C) minus
D) plus
Article Summary
In a September 2013 speech to the Independent Bankers Association of Texas, Federal
Reserve Bank of Dallas president Richard Fisher stated that the Fed’s credibility was
harmed when it announced the previous week that it would continue its large bond
purchasing program. In June, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke had stated that that the
program could begin to be cut back later in the year, and several other Fed officials
expressed being open to the announced timing of this policy. Bernanke’s change in his
announced timeline of the Fed’s intentions regarding the bond purchasing program
brought criticism that the Fed had misled investors. In his speech, Fisher stated “I
disagreed with the decision of the committee and argued against it. Doing nothing at
this meeting would increase uncertainty about the future conduct of policy and call the
credibility of our communications into question. I believe that is exactly what has
occurred, though I take no pleasure in saying so.” Fisher has been a long-time opponent
of the Fed’s bond purchasing program, claiming it is ineffective and may well lead to
future inflation, and had been calling for the Fed to begin phasing out this program in
September.
Source: “Fisher: Standing pat on policy hurt Fed’s credibility,” Reuters, September 23,
2013.
Refer to the Article Summary. Richard Fisher brought the Fed’s credibility into question
when it decided to continue with its bond purchasing program despite leading many to
believe that the program would begin to be phased out. Prior to this, over the past two
decades whenever a change in Fed policy had been announced, the change has
________ taken place, leading to ________ credibility.
A) rarely; greater
B) actually; greater
C) rarely; less
D) actually; less