WASHINGTON: The US Federal Reserve opened its two-day policy meeting on Tuesday (Jul 29), with the central bank widely expected to hold off on further interest rate cuts despite fierce political pressure from President Donald Trump to slash levels.
Fed policymakers have kept the benchmark lending rate unchanged since their last rate reduction in December, as officials wait for clarity on how Trump’s tariffs are impacting the world’s biggest economy.
Their patient approach has riled the president, who has chastised Fed Chair Jerome Powell on multiple occasions, calling him a “numbskull” and a “moron”.
On Tuesday, the Fed said in a statement that its policy meeting started at 9am US Eastern time (9pm, Singapore time) as scheduled.
The case for holding interest rates steady at a range between 4.25 per cent and 4.50 per cent this week has been made by several Fed speakers, said JP Morgan chief US economist Michael Feroli in a recent note.
Inflation remains above the Fed’s longer-term target of 2 per cent, risks still persist, and the labour market is near full employment, he added.
