The Federal Reserve decided to maintain the United States’ basic interest rate in the range between 3.5% and 3.75%, following a meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) held this Wednesday (28). The decision was announced in a statement released at 2 pm Eastern Time.
According to the Fed, the most recent indicators indicate that economic activity continues to expand at a solid pace. Job creation remains moderate, while the unemployment rate shows signs of stabilizing. Inflation, however, remains above the 2% target set by the central bank.
The Committee highlighted that uncertainty regarding the economic outlook is still high and stated that it will continue to pay attention to the risks to the labor market and inflation. The Fed reinforced that future decisions on interest rate adjustments will depend on the evolution of economic data, the balance of risks and the international scenario.
Maintaining the rate was approved by the majority of FOMC members. Two members voted against the decision and defended a 0.25 percentage point cut in the interest rate at this meeting.
