Amid rising prices for gas, food and housing, the Federal Reserve on Sept. 16 raised its benchmark interest rate for the first time since 2023.
The quarter-point increase lifts the Fed’s key rate to about 3.9%. The Fed also signaled another rate hike later this year to 4.1%.
“Today’s policy action will support a timelier return” to the central bank’s 2% inflation goal, the Fed said in a statement.
Fed Chair Kevin Warsh said that while the job market remains resilient, inflation has stubbornly remained above the Fed’s 2% target for years, according to The Associated Press. “The plain fact is that inflation is too high and has been for too long,” he said.
President Donald Trump has consistently called for cuts to the Fed’s key rate.
