Fed Minutes Reveal Debate Over 'considerable Time' Pledge

(RTTNews) - The Federal Reserve debated how best to communicate their outlook for interest rate hikes, according to the minutes of the central bank's October meeting released Wednesday.

October's meeting marked the end of the central bank's historic bond-buying program, as Fed officials trumpeted "solid jobs gains" in employment and diminishing slack in the labor market.

The Fed renewed its pledge to keep interest rates at historically low levels for a "considerable time," but the minutes show some members wanted to remove that statement in favor of a more specific time line.

Others worried that removing the phrase would unduly signal a significant shift in policy, resulting in tighter market conditions.

A number of participants were concerned about global headwinds hurting U.S. economic growth, but the FOMC ultimately refrained from citing problems in Europe and Asia.

Officials are also worried that U.S. inflation may stay low "for quite some time."