WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Wednesday set the stage for the central bank’s first rate cut in four years, citing greater progress toward lower inflation as well as a cooler job market that no longer threatens to overheat the economy.
Still, the Fed kept its key interest rate unchanged at a 23-year high of 5.3%, despite calls from some economists and Democratic politicians to implement a cut Wednesday. Instead, Powell said that, if inflation continues to fall, “a reduction in our policy rate could be on the table” when the Fed next meets Sept. 17-18.
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