Federal Reserve holds rates steady for fifth consecutive meeting

Economy

Business, Investing

The Federal Reserve as expected stood pat on Wednesday afternoon at its July monetary policy meeting, holding short-term interest rates steady for their fifth consecutive meeting this year.

In a 9-1 vote, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) left the target range on its benchmark Federal Funds Rate unchanged at a level between 0.25 and 0.50%. In December, the FOMC abandoned a seven-year zero interest rate policy by lifting the Fed Funds Rate by 25 basis points. It represented the first rate hike by the Fed in nearly a decade.

Notably, the FOMC said in its July monetary policy statement that near term risks to the economic outlook have diminished while economic activity has expanded at a moderate rate. Kansas City Fed president Esther George served as the lone dissenter.

Following the release, the Dow Jones Industrial Average stood at 18,467.65, down 0.03% on the day, while the S&P 500 Composite index lost 0.28% to 2,157.50. Both indices were relatively flat before the Fed issued its statement. The U.S. Dollar Index, which measures the strength of the greenback versus a basket of six other currencies, rose to 97.37, extending slight gains from earlier in the session. EUR/USD fell slightly to 1.0984, flat on the session.

Yields on the U.S. 10-Year, meanwhile, remained largely unchanged at 1.528%, down three basis points for the day.

The FOMC is scheduled to meet next on September 20-21.

Source Investing.com