FOMC Minutes

What the minutes are

The minutes of a Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting are the official written record of what the committee discussed. Where the policy statement released on decision day runs to a few paragraphs, the minutes run to many pages. They summarise the staff’s economic and financial briefings, the participants’ views on the outlook and risks, the policy discussion, and the reasoning behind the decision.

They do not name who said what. Views are attributed in aggregate, using phrases such as “a few participants”, “several”, “many” or “most”. Reading those quantifiers is part of the craft of interpreting the minutes.

Who publishes them and when

The Federal Reserve publishes the minutes of each regularly scheduled meeting three weeks after the date of the policy decision, at 2:00 PM Eastern Time. With eight scheduled meetings a year, that means eight sets of minutes. Release dates follow directly from the meeting calendar on the Fed’s FOMC calendar page.

The minutes are distinct from transcripts, which are near-verbatim records of the meeting released only after a five-year lag, and from the policy statement itself.

What is in them

A typical set of minutes covers:

• Developments in financial markets and open market operations, including the Fed’s balance sheet.
• The staff review of the economic situation and outlook, prepared by Federal Reserve Board economists.
• Participants’ views on current conditions and the economic outlook, covering inflation, the labor market, growth, financial conditions and risks.
• The committee’s policy action, with the reasoning and the vote, including the reasons for any dissents.
• At meetings with a Summary of Economic Projections, discussion that helps explain the projections and the dot plot.

What traders look for

The minutes are backward-looking, since the decision is already three weeks old and the Chair has already given a press conference. Their market value comes from detail the statement cannot carry:

• How broad the support was for the decision, and how many participants leaned toward a different path.
• The balance of risks: whether participants were more worried about inflation staying high or about the labor market weakening.
• Conditions for future moves: discussion of what participants would need to see before raising, cutting or holding rates.
• Balance sheet plans, which are often discussed in more depth in the minutes than in the statement.
• Differences from the press conference. If the minutes sound more hawkish or dovish than the Chair did, markets may reassess.

How markets commonly react

Most of the time the minutes produce a modest reaction, because markets have had three weeks of data and Fed speeches since the meeting. A noticeable move is more likely when the minutes reveal a split that was not apparent on decision day, or when they show more participants open to a policy change than investors had assumed. A more hawkish tone than expected is commonly said to lift Treasury yields and weigh on stocks; a more dovish tone, the reverse. These reactions are unreliable and often fade.

Common misreadings

• Treating “some participants” as the committee’s view. The minutes report a range of opinions; the decision and statement reflect the committee.
• Reading the minutes as new policy. They describe a meeting that has already happened. Data released since may have changed the picture.
• Ignoring the quantifiers. The difference between “a few” and “many” can be the whole story.
• Confusing participants with voters. All nineteen participants (the governors and the twelve Reserve Bank presidents, when all seats are filled) take part in the discussion, but only twelve vote.

How the minutes fit the Fed cycle

The minutes sit between two meetings: they arrive roughly halfway to the next decision. They often appear in the same window as major data such as the CPI or the jobs report, and the Beige Book follows about two weeks before the next meeting. For the full picture of how decision day works, see the FOMC rate decision explainer.

Frequently asked questions

When are FOMC minutes released?

Three weeks after the date of the policy decision, at 2:00 PM Eastern Time.

Do the minutes say which officials held which views?

No. Views are described anonymously using terms such as “a few”, “several” and “many”. Formal votes and dissents are named.

What is the difference between the minutes and the transcript?

The minutes are a summary published three weeks after the meeting. Transcripts are a near-verbatim record published after a five-year lag.

Why do markets move on old news?

Because the minutes can reveal how divided the committee was and what would prompt future moves, information that the short statement does not provide.

Explainer updated November 13, 2026.