And, if anything, productivity has been surprisingly strong, not weak, in recent quarters. The improving picture for financial markets and the economy since last spring has meant that the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) has not undertaken any new initiatives to ease financial conditions and stimulate demand at its past several meetings.
We have left the unusually accommodative posture of policy – in terms of our plans for our balance sheet and the level of our policy interest rates – in place. It's important to judge this posture against how the economy is likely to evolve against our objectives in the future.