WASHINGTON—The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady at its Open Market Committee meeting here, and indicated it will move more slowly on rates than it had previously said it would.
The FOMC said it will leave the central bank’s benchmark interest rate in a range of 0.25%-0.5% following its March meeting. In December, 2015, the Fed signaled it planned four rate hikes during 2016, but now it says two quarter-point hikes are likely this year, one of which has already taken place.
The Fed said “global economic and financial developments continue to pose risks,” and as a result it is moving cautiously. In its statement the Fed said that while there has been mixed economic data, there have also been strong increases in core inflation measures excluding food and energy prices. “Inflation picked up in recent months,” the Fed said.