Fed leaves rates unchanged for now

Waiting game: Powell at a press conference in Washington. The Fed chair says he is less confident US inflation will fall over the course of the year. — Reuters

WASHINGTON: The US Federal Reserve (Fed) held interest rates steady on Wednesday and signalled it is still leaning towards eventual reductions in borrowing costs, but put a red flag on recent disappointing inflation readings that could make those rate cuts a while in coming.

Indeed, Fed chair Jerome Powell said that after starting 2024 with three months of faster-than-expected price increases, it “will take longer than previously expected” for policymakers to become comfortable that inflation will resume the decline towards 2% that had cheered them through much of last year.