Federal Reserve: Direct Monetary Policy In The United States

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Federal Reserve Paper Michele Whitney ECO 212 July 19, 2010 Blake Bennett Federal Reserve Paper Charles A. Lindbergh Sr. once said, “This [Federal Reserve Act] establishes the most gigantic trust on Earth. When the President [Wilson} signs this bill, the invisible government of the monetary power will be legalized....the worst legislative crime of the ages is perpetrated by this banking and currency bill” (Lindbergh, 1913, p.1). The Federal Reserve (Fed) controls and manages the United States money supply. The Feds also try to direct monetary policy, and put actions into place to follow that policy. These policies effect the country’s economy production and employment. Money is how the whole country works. Goods and services can’t…show more content…
The Fed is able to effectively manipulate the United States money supply in three primary ways: the first was is by setting the federal funds rate. That is the price that banks charge one another for loans. The federal funds rate then directly influences the concession rate: which is the set price that banks may borrow money from the Federal Reserve banks at. Banks are then able to lend to consumers at slightly higher rates, which is one way banks make money. The discount rate, in turn, directly affects the rates at which banks can lend money to its customers. When the Fed lowers the rate, it tends to have the effect of increasing consumer demand for money, since consumers are able to borrow money from banks at lower rates. The second way is by adjusting reserve ratios. The reserve ratio is the amount of cash banks most keep on hand in relation to the amount of money they loan out to consumers. When the Fed lowers the reserve ratio, it means that banks are able to loan out more money to its customers since they need to keep fewer dollars in cash reserves relative to the amount of money they lend out. The final way the Fed controls money is by buying and selling United States securities. When the Fed buys securities, it has the effect of increasing the money supply within the market, since the Fed issues cash in exchange for the securities it is purchasing. On the other hand, if the Fed sells securities it…show more content…
An example of this is the change in the federal funds rate. The Federal Reserve has targeted its federal funds rate at or near 0%. Currently, the federal funds rate is at 0.5%. To put this in perspective, the federal funds rate in August of 2007 was 5.25%. This is an attempt by the Fed to encourage citizens to borrow money from the banks at a very low rate. With this action, the Fed is hoping that more consumers will take advantage of these historically low rates to borrow money for new projects that could stimulate the economy. This action by the Federal Reserve was provoked in response to the recent economic crisis brought about by the mortgage and banking meltdowns the United States has experienced over the past several
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