The Federal Reserve, saying that inflation remains its “predominant policy concern,” left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 5.25 percent on Thursday and signaled that it would keep it at that level for some time, The New York Times reported.
The rate decision, which financial markets had already taken as a given, meant that the central bank’s “pause” in rate increases is now one year old -- a record of sorts for a policy that was originally billed as tentative, the paper reported.
In its statement, the Federal Reserve acknowledged that consumer prices had climbed more slowly in recent months. Instead of describing inflation as “elevated,” as it did after its policy meeting in May, the central bank said: “Readings on core inflation have improved modestly in recent months. However, a sustained moderation in inflation pressures has yet to be convincingly demonstrated,” the paper reported.
But policy makers stopped well short of declaring victory. They repeated their concern that a tight labor market and a further reduction in available factory capacity could once again push inflation higher, the paper reported.-New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants
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