Federal Reserve Leaves Interest Rates Unchanged, Signals 3 Cuts This Year

Central bank officials see higher for longer rates in 2025 and 2026.

U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell holds a press conference at the end of a two-day Federal Open Market Committee meeting at the Federal Reserve in Washington on March 20, 2024. The Reserve voted on March 20 to hold interest rates at a 23-year high, between 5.25 percent and 5.50 percent, for a fifth consecutive meeting, and signaled it still expects to make three rate cuts this year. Photo by Mandel NGAN / AFP

The Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged at the March Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) policy meeting on March 20, but officials signaled that three rate cuts were still planned for this year.

Monetary authorities kept the benchmark Fed funds rate at a range of 5.25 percent and 5.5 percent, the highest level in 23 years.