Fed Again Holds Key Interest Rate at Record Low Near Zero

The Federal Reserve voted for the ninth straight time Wednesday to keep a key U.S. interest rate at a record low “target range” of zero to 0.25%.

The Fed first lowered the key federal funds interest rate to that range last December.

In response, commercial banks’ prime lending rate, used to peg rates on home equity loans, certain credit cards and other consumer loans, will remain about 3.25%, the lowest point in decades, the Associated Press reported.

The Federal Open Market Committee said in a statement that “economic conditions, including low rates of resource utilization, subdued inflation trends, and stable inflation expectations, are likely to warrant exceptionally low levels of the federal funds rate for an extended period.”

Click here to view the full Fed statement. (Federal Reserve Web site.)