2019年经济学人货币市场和美联储(2)（打印版）

Fortunately, the Fed's interventions seemed to work. The repo rate returned to its usual level, close to the federal funds rate,

幸运的是，美联储的干预似乎起到了作用。回购利率回到了正常水平，接近联邦基金利率，

which in turn is within the range targeted by the Fed.

而联邦基金利率又在美联储的目标区间之内。

Even so, the turmoil raised questions about how it plans to handle future cash shortages.

即便如此，市场动荡引发了外界对美联储计划如何应对未来现金短缺的质疑。

The mere prospect of them marks an important shift for America's financial system.

对美国的金融体系而言，仅仅是它们的前景就标志着一个重要的转变。

Before the financial crisis the Fed controlled the federal funds rate using a "corridor", with a ceiling and a floor.

金融危机前，美联储通过上限和下限“走廊”来控制联邦基金利率。

Banks with too little cash could borrow at the ceiling rate.

现金太少的银行可以按最高利率借款。

But there was no compensation for extra cash held at the Fed (the floor interest rate was zero).

但美联储持有的额外现金没有补偿（最低利率为零）。

To keep interest rates precisely on target the Fed used "open market operations",

为了使利率精确地保持在目标水平，美联储通过“公开市场操作”，

swapping Treasuries and cash to control liquidity in the banking system.

交换国债和现金，以控制银行体系的流动性。

Six years of quantitative easing changed all that. To push down long-term interest rates,

六年的量化宽松改变了这一切。为了降低长期利率，

the Fed bought vast quantities of long-dated Treasury bonds. Its balance sheet ballooned to $4.5trn.

美联储购买了大量的远期国债。其资产负债表膨胀至了4.5万亿美元。

The holders— mainly banks—ended up with mountains of cash. To keep market interest rates at or above the policy rate,

持有者—主要是银行—最后得到了一大笔钱。为了保证市场利率不低于政策利率，

the Fed was authorised by Congress to raise the floor from zero, compensating banks for their cash that it held.

国会授权美联储将将利率下限从零上调，以补偿银行持有的现金。

The ceiling became redundant, as did open market operations. Only the floor mattered.

上限变得多余，公开市场操作也是如此。只有下限才是重要的。

But banks' cash piles have dwindled of late.

但是银行的现金储备最近有所减少。

Since late 2017 the Fed has been reducing its balance-sheet by not reinvesting all the proceeds when its assets mature.

自2017年末以来，美联储一直在通过在资产到期时不将所有收益进行再投资的方式缩减资产负债表。

The balance-sheet shrank from $4.5trn in 2017 to $3.8trn in June this year.

其资产负债表从2017年的4.5万亿美元减少至今年6月的3.8万亿美元。

Moreover, a wider budget deficit means the Treasury has had to issue more bills and bonds.

此外，预算赤字扩大意味着财政部不得不发行更多的票据和债券。

So far this year it has issued an average of $63.9bn-worth per month, net of repayments.

今年到目前为止，扣除还款，该公司每月平均发行的债券价值639亿美元。

During the same period in 2017 the monthly figure was just $19.6bn. As banks buy Treasuries, their cash piles fall.

2017年同期，该数字仅为196亿美元。当银行购买国债时，他们的现金储备就会减少