"Consistent with its statutory mandate, the Committee seeks to foster maximum employment and price stability. In support of these goals, the Committee decided to maintain the target range for the federal funds rate at 2-1/4 to 2-1/2 percent."
“根据其法定授权，委员会力求促进最大限度的就业和价格稳定。为了支持这些目标，委员会决定将联邦基金利率的目标范围维持在2.25至2.5％ “。
—FOMC Statement, March 20, 2019
-FOMC声明，2019年3月20日
Introduction
介绍
The Federal Reserve is the central bank of the United States. Its dual mandate from Congress is to promote maximum employment and price stability. To achieve this mandate, the Federal Reserve conducts monetary policy by influencing market interest rates. However, the means by which the Federal Reserve influences interest rates have changed over time.
美联储是美国的中央银行。国会赋予的双重使命是促进最大限度的就业和价格稳定。为实现这一使命，美联储通过影响市场利率来实施货币政策。然而，美联储影响利率的手段随着时间的推移而发生了变化。
Influencing the Economy through the Federal Funds Rate
通过联邦基金利率影响经济
For decades prior to 2008, the Federal Reserve's Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) would adjust monetary policy to match economic conditions by raising or lowering its target for the federal funds rate (FFR), the rate that banks charge each other for overnight loans.2 The Fed can influence the general cost of borrowing through this one rate because, although short-term interest rates differ from each other, they are closely linked.3 If one short-term rate gets much below others, financial institutions will tend to borrow in that market and lend where rates are higher. This tendency puts upward pressure on the lower rate and downward pressure on the higher rate—keeping rates linked. This is known as arbitrage, an important aspect of the way financial markets, and monetary policy, work. So, by influencing one rate—the FFR—the Federal Reserve can influence other short-term rates, which affect longer-term interest rates, consumer and producer decisions, and ultimately the level of employment and inflation in the U.S. economy (Figure 1).
在2008年之前的几十年，美联储的联邦公开市场委员会（FOMC）通过提高或降低联邦基金利率（FFR）目标来调整货币政策以匹配经济状况，联邦基金利率是银行相互收取隔夜贷款的利率。美联储可以通过FFR影响借贷的一般成本，因为尽管短期利率彼此不同，但它们是密切相关的。如果一个短期利率远低于其他利率，金融机构将倾向于在那个市场借入资金并在利率较高的地方借出。这种趋势对较低的利率构成了上行压力，而较高的利率则面临下行压力。这被称为套利，是金融市场和货币政策工作方式的重要方面。因此，通过影响一个利率——FFR，美联储可以影响其他短期利率，这会影响长期利率，消费者和生产者决策，最终影响美国经济中的就业和通胀水平（图1）。
