Market Operation and Its Effect on Money Supply

By
Evan Tarver
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Evan Tarver has 6+ years of experience in financial analysis and 5+ years as an author, editor, and copywriter.
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Updated August 27, 2021
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Michael J Boyle
Michael Boyle
Reviewed by Michael J Boyle
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Michael Boyle is an experienced financial professional with more than 10 years working with financial planning, derivatives, equities, fixed income, project management, and analytics.
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Fact checked by Marcus Reeves

The open market operations conducted by the Federal Reserve affect the money supply of an economy through the buying and selling of government securities.

When the Federal Reserve purchases government securities on the open market, it increases the reserves of commercial banks and allows them to increase their loans and investments; increases the price of government securities and effectively reduces their interest rates; and decreases overall interest rates, promoting business investments.

Open Market Definition

If the Federal Reserve were to sell government securities on the open market, the opposite would be true. It would decrease the reserves of commercial banks and reduce their loans and investments, decreasing the price of government securities and increasing their interest rates, and increasing overall interest rates, reducing business investments.

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) specifies and decides on short-term objectives for open market operations. The FOMC sets a target federal funds rate and uses open market operations to adjust the supply of reserve balances to achieve that target.

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  1. Federal Reserve. "Federal Open Market Committee."