World Blog by humble servant.Market Coverage.Fed held Rates steady Eddie as expected.
Much to no one’s surprise, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) left the federal funds rate unchanged today in a target range of 1.5% - 1.75%; while signaling it would keep rates at their current level through 2020. The key statement: “The committee judges that the current stance of monetary policy is appropriate to support sustained expansion of economic activity, strong labor market conditions, and inflation near the committee’s symmetric 2% objective.” It was the first unanimous vote since last May, with the FOMC’s statement noting it would continue to monitor economic data, “including global developments and muted inflation pressures.” The only possibly-perceived hawkish element to the statement was the removal of an earlier reference to “uncertainties” regarding the economic outlook. The FOMC also released new quarterly forecasts, as follows: The median estimate for the fed funds rate is 1.6% at the end of 2019 and 2020, 1.9% in 2021 and 2.1% in 2022 (all are down from t...