• * The committee views changes in the target range for the federal funds rate as its primary means of adjusting the stance of monetary policy.
• * The committee will determine the timing and pace of reducing the size of the Federal Reserve's balance sheet so as to promote its maximum employment and price stability goals. It expects that reducing the size of the Federal Reserve's balance sheet will commence after the process of increasing the target range for the federal funds rate has begun.
• * The committee intends to reduce the Federal Reserve's securities holdings over time in a predictable manner primarily by adjusting the amounts reinvested of principal payments received from securities held in the System Open Market Account (SOMA).
• * Over time, the committee intends to maintain securities holdings in amounts needed to implement monetary policy efficiently and effectively in its ample reserves regime.
• * In the longer run, the committee intends to hold primarily Treasury securities in the SOMA, thereby minimizing the effect of Federal Reserve holdings on the allocation of credit across sectors of the economy.
• * The committee is prepared to adjust any of the details of its approach to reducing the size of the balance sheet in light of economic and financial developments.

With this in mind, the Fed said in its first statement that it would continue to reduce the monthly pace of its net asset purchases, bringing them to an end in early March. Beginning in February, the FOMC will increase its holdings of Treasury securities by at least $20 billion per month and of agency mortgage‑backed securities by at least $10 billion per month. The Federal Reserve's ongoing purchases and holdings of securities will continue to foster smooth market functioning and accommodative financial conditions, thereby supporting the flow of credit to households and businesses.

The Fed said that, in general, "financial conditions remain accommodative, in part reflecting policy measures to support the economy and the flow of credit to U.S. households and businesses," pointing to, for example, strong job gains in recent months, though said that supply and demand imbalances related to the pandemic and the reopening of the economy continue to contribute to elevated levels of inflation.