The U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) decided to keep the policy interest rate unchanged at the range of 4.25-4.50 percent. The decision was made by a vote of 11 to 1.

In the Fed’s statement, it was mentioned that Christopher Waller supported keeping the policy rate steady but preferred to continue the current pace of asset tapering. The announcement stated that the federal funds rate target range was kept unchanged at 4.25-4.50 percent to support the bank’s objectives. FED HALTS INTEREST RATE CUTS IN JANUARY Fed had cut interest rates for the first time in four years last September and reduced the policy rate by 50 basis points. Following 25 basis point cuts in November and December of last year, Fed paused the rate cuts in January after three consecutive reductions in the past year. In the U.S., inflation was recorded at 2.8 percent on a yearly basis in February after reaching a high of 9 percent in June 2022, the highest since 1981.