Fed raises interest rates and signals more in 2019
Following the decision, Wall Street stocks erase gains and the dollar bounces off its intraday lows
Washington — The US Federal Reserve raised interest rates on Wednesday, as expected, but forecast fewer rate hikes next year and signalled its tightening cycle is nearing an end in the face of financial market volatility and slowing global growth. Following the decision, stocks erased gains, 10-year Treasury yields fell and the dollar bounced off its lows of the day. The central bank said the US economy has been growing at a strong rate and the job market has continued to improve. It noted that “some” further gradual rate hikes would be needed, a subtle change that suggested it was preparing to stop raising borrowing costs. In a statement issued after the end of its last policy meeting of the year, the Fed said risks to the economy were “roughly balanced” but that it would “continue to monitor global economic and financial developments and assess their implications for the economic outlook.” The rate hike, the fourth of 2018, lifted the target range for the Fed’s benchmark overnight...
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