More from BOA Merrill courtesy of our friends at efxnews.com

Says BOAM Global Research:

Following the first Fed rate hike in nearly a decade, market attention will turn to the December minutes to divine the timing of the second one - and, more generally, the pace of hikes. Discussion in the minutes is likely to be supportive of liftoff - and in that sense somewhat hawkish - but overall consistent with an expected gradual hiking cycle, at least initially. The market still sees a much lower end-2016 funds rate target than the FOMC, and thus will be looking for clues to what factors determine "gradual."

The minutes likely will show that the key to subsequent hikes will be confidence in the outlook, especially for inflation. In her press conference, Chair Yellen suggested the Committee does not need to see higher actual inflation for a second hike. What indicators would give the majority of the FOMC confidence that inflation was returning to target thus will receive particular attention. Notable will be views over the degree of remaining labor market slack and the stability of inflation expectations. Concerns about global risks or financial conditions also would garner market attention. Given the detailed discussion of the neutral rate of interest (r*) in the October minutes, we expect a briefer mention in December.

With the focus of this meeting on liftoff and the corresponding implementation details, we expect a limited discussion of the balance sheet as well, with no decisions reached. More interesting would be any debate about the risks of a premature rate hike, and discussion of what tools the Fed might consider if it were necessary to reverse course and ease policy in the not-to-distant future. Along these lines, the dispersion of views concerning the outlook and future policy actions will be noteworthy, as market participants may attempt to infer the strength of support for further hikes - and the likely pace. While December's decision was unanimous, the minutes could give hints about points of disagreement that might lead to either hawkish or dovish dissents in 2016.