Federal Reserve officials discussed rate hike procedures at a joint meeting, but agreed the discussion does not signal rate action is coming soon.
That was one of the key data points from the minutes of the FOMC meeting, released Wednesday.
The Fed discussed the right mix of tools to control rates and board members agreed a mix of tools is likely needed to normalize rates.
“Participants generally agreed that starting to consider the options for normalization at this meeting was prudent, as it would help the committee to make decisions about approaches to policy normalization and to communicate its plans to the public well before the first steps in normalizing policy become appropriate,” the minutes said.