Business Case Studies & Business Publications

Decoding Fedspeak

Sun, Bo

Technical Note

Decoding Fedspeak

Sun, Bo

GEM-0243 | Published June 11, 2025 | 22 Pages Technical Note

Collection: Darden School of Business

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This technical note examines "Fedspeak"—the evolving communications strategy of the US Federal Reserve (the Fed). Once characterized by deliberate opacity, the Fed now actively shares information about current policy decisions, anticipated future actions, and the uncertainties that shape them. As of 2025, communication has become a core instrument of monetary policy, used to guide market expectations and promote transparency. In response, market participants scrutinize every Fed statement in an effort to anticipate its next move. The note explores what the Fed chooses to communicate and why, with particular attention to the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) and its tools: the Summary of Economic Projections (SEP), dot plots, forward guidance, fan charts, and other key forms of institutional signaling.