There was a general sense among Federal Reserve officials that their new bond-buying program would last, at most, until the end of the year, according to the minutes of their December meeting released on Thursday
Several Fed officials thought that the central bank would be able to either slow or stop the purchases well before December
A few members said that the plan would likely be needed until about the end of the year
Almost all Fed members thought that the $40 billion per-month program to buy mortgage debt started in September was working, but there was also uncertainty about whether the benefits would last and that the potential costs could rise as the size of the Fed's balance sheet increased At the December meeting, the Fed boosted their quantitative easing program by adding $45 billion of monthly Treasury purchases
