FOMC Communication and Interest Rate Sensitivity to News

Abstract

In this paper, I examine whether communications by the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) play a role in determining the types of macroeconomic news that financial markets pay attention to. To do so, I construct novel measures of the intensity with which FOMC statements and meeting minutes discussed labor relative to other topics. I find that these labor topic intensity measures are related to the amount by which interest rates? response to labor-related news exceeds their response to all other news. This relationship is especially strong for interest rates of longer maturities and is also present for short-term interest rate expectations over various horizons.

Keywords: Federal Reserve, FOMC, central bank communications, interest rates

JEL Classification: E43, E52, E58, G12