Fed's Doves Speaking Up

Updated from 2:26 p.m. EDT

A debate is brewing at the Federal Reserve about whether monetary policy is at risk of becoming too restrictive, minutes of the policymaking Federal Open Market Committee's March 27 and 28 meeting showed Tuesday.

Fed members generally agree that after 15 consecutive quarter-point rate hikes, rates are nearing a neutral level and should now be determined by the character of incoming economic data, the notes showed. But among the Fed's voting members, the level of comfort with the prospect of future tightening seems uneven.

"Most members thought that the end of the tightening process was likely to be near, and some expressed concerns about the dangers of tightening too much, given the lags in the effects of policy," the minutes read. "However, members also recognized that in current circumstances, checking upside risks to inflation was important to sustaining good economic performance." ...