The Federal Reserve Open Market Committee has voted to leave interest rates unchanged for the time being.

In a unanimous vote Wednesday, policy makers said that while there is evidence economic activity is continuing to increase, there are concerns that a recent increase in business investment has moderated.
In a written statement, the Committee said it “expects the rate of increase of final demand to pick up over coming quarters, supported in part by robust underlying growth in productivity, but the degree of the strengthening remains uncertain.”
The decision keeps interest rates at a 40-year low with the federal funds rate at 1.75%, and the more symbolic discount rate, charged to banks for loans directly from the Fed, at 1.25%. The move also keeps interest rates where they were since last December.
Many economists expect there won’t be an increase in rates at least until the end of the year due to the slow economy and concerns over accounting scandals.
0 Comments