The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady at its first policy meeting of the year and said it was carefully monitoring the coronavirus outbreak in China for any implications on the U.S. economy
WASHINGTON - The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady on Wednesday at its first policy meeting of the year, with the head of the U.S. central bank pointing to continued moderate economic growth and a “strong” job market, and giving no sign of any imminent changes in borrowing costs.
But, he added, “uncertainties about the outlook remain, including those posed by the new coronavirus.” The outbreak of the new flu-like virus in China has led to fears of a further slowdown in the world’s second-largest economy. The Fed’s statement, calling out solid job gains and low unemployment, was little changed from the one issued after its December meeting.
But Powell said the Fed would likely begin scaling back that amount sometime in the April-June period, when the amount of reserves in the banking system would likely be deemed adequate. Fed policymakers have been discussing how and when to end the temporary Treasury bill purchases, which have been underway since October, and what sort of permanent replacement it could use to ensure the central bank keeps control of the federal funds rate.
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