The US Federal Reserve has said that it might spend about $85 billion a month to purchase mortgage-backed securities and Treasury securities in order to help reduce the borrowing costs. The fed is aiming to keep the interest rates at about zero level till unemployment falls to at least 6.5 percent.

The Federal Reserve has been purchasing such assets in order to help reduce borrowing costs to boost borrowing, spending and investing in the world's largest economy. The Federal Reserve is likely to replace a programme of Treasury purchases with a new bond buying plan that will expand its efforts.

The Fed announced that it would spend $45 billion a month for buying Treasuries and $40 billion a month for mortgage-backed bonds. The authority had started its mortgage-backed bonds buying scheme in September this year to support the housing market and reduce long term interest rates.

The asset purchases are believed to have an impact on the US dollar. The US dollar edged a bit lower against most major currencies on Thursday after the Federal Reserve announced new measures to boost the economic growth in the country.