BIS Review 55/2004  Table 1 Trends in average annual population growth rate Regions/countries  1950-55  1975-80  2000-02  2025-30  2045-50  World  1.8  1.7  1.2  0.8  0.5  More developed regions Less developed regions Least developed regions  1.2 2.1 1.9  0.6 2.1 2.4  0.2 1.5 2.5  0.0 1.0 2.0  –0.2 0.6 1.4  Asia Eastern Asia South-central Asia South-eastern Asia Western Asia  1.9 1.8 2.0 2.1 2.6  1.9 1.4 2.2 2.2 2.7  1.3 0.7 1.7 1.4 2.1  0.7 0.2 1.0 0.8 1.6  0.3 –0.3 0.6 0.4 1.1  China  1.9  1.5  0.7  0.2  –0.3  India Bangladesh Sri Lanka Pakistan  2.0 2.0 2.5 2.0  2.1 2.4 1.6 2.9  1.5 2.1 0.9 2.5  0.8 1.1 0.3 1.7  0.4 0.7 –0.1 1.0  Indonesia Thailand Malaysia Philippines  1.7 3.0 2.7 3.0  2.2 2.3 2.3 2.7  1.2 1.1 1.7 1.9  0.7 0.5 1.0 1.0  0.3 0.0 0.5 0.5  Source: United Nations, World Population Ageing 1950-2050, Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, 2002.
Many factors may have contributed to this market reaction. Among them, I would argue that market expectations began to lose touch with Committee intentions in two ways. First, while the Committee sees policy as data dependent, markets seem to fix on dates. The decision to reduce purchases now or to hold off for a meeting or two does not carry great macroeconomic significance.