Today, in its first meeting in 5 weeks, the Federal Open Market Committee voted 9-to-1 to leave the Fed Funds Rate unchanged.
The Fed Fund Rate remains within its target range of 0.000-0.250 percent.
In its press release, the FOMC said that, since April, “the economic recovery is proceeding” and that the jobs market “is improving gradually”. Business spending “has risen significantly”, too, with the exception of commercial real estate.
Today’s statement is the 8th straight press release in which the Fed shows optimism for the U.S. economy, dating back to June 2009. Since that time, the Fed has terminated all of the programs it created to support the economy through the economic crisis.
The recession is widely believed to be over.
And, although the Fed’s statement acknowledged economic growth, it did highlight lingering threats, too.
- Employers are still reluctant to hire new workers
- European debt concerns could spill-over to the U.S.
- Bank lending is contracting
Also, as expected, the Fed re-affirmed its plan to hold the Fed Funds Rate near zero percent “for an extended period”, citing that “inflation has trended lower” recently.
Mortgage market reaction has been positive thus far. Mortgage rates in are slightly improved post-FOMC.
The FOMC’s next scheduled meeting is August 10, 2010.
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