The Federal Reserve cut interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point but signalled a slower pace of easing next year, sending the dollar racing to a two-year high and igniting a sell-off in US stocks.
The Federal Open Market Committee on Wednesday voted to reduce benchmark rate to 4.25 per cent to 4.5 per cent, its third cut in a row. Cleveland Fed president Beth Hammack casting a dissenting vote, preferring to hold rates steady.
Officials’ projections for rates in 2025 also pointed to fewer cuts than forecast, underscoring policymakers’ concern about lingering inflation. In a sign of those worries, policymakers also raised their inflation forecast for next year.