Federal Reserve officials deliberated whether to slow down or pause the runoff of their nearly $6.8 trillion asset portfolio at their meeting last month as they face complications in the months ahead stemming from the need to raise the federal debt limit.

Minutes from the last Federal Reserve meeting read, “Regarding the composition of secondary-market purchases of Treasury securities that would

The idea of a pause has not been on the minds of forecasters who track Fed balance sheet developments, and any such action could potentially represent a communications challenge for the central bank.