Fed votes to hold rates steady, notes 'uncertain' impacts from Iran war

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Last edited Wed Mar 18, 2026, 03:07 PM - Edit history (2)

Source: CNBC

Published Wed, Mar 18 2026 2:00 PM EDT Updated 23 Min Ago


WASHINGTON - The Federal Reserve on Wednesday voted to hold its key interest rate steady as policymakers navigate their way through higher-than-expected inflation readings, mixed signs on the labor market - and a war.

In a widely expected decision, the Federal Open Market Committee voted 11-1 to keep the benchmark federal funds rate anchored in a range between 3.5%-3.75%. The rate sets overnight funding costs for banks but influences a broad range of consumer and business borrowing.

The committee in its post-meeting statement made few changes to its view on the economy, with a slightly faster pace of growth and higher inflation projections for 2026.

Despite the elevated uncertainty, officials again signaled they still expect a few rate cuts ahead. The closely watched "dot plot," which reflects individual members' rate projections, pointed to one reduction this year and another in 2027, though the timing remains unclear.



Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/18/fed-interest-rate-decision-march-2026.html

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Article updated.

Original article/headline -

Federal Reserve holds interest rates steady, as expected

Published Wed, Mar 18 2026 2:00 PM EDT Updated 2 Min Ago


WASHINGTON - The Federal Reserve on Wednesday voted to hold its key interest rate steady as policymakers navigate their way through higher-than-expected inflation readings, mixed signs on the labor market - and a war. In a widely expected decision, the Federal Open Market Committee voted 11-1 to keep the benchmark federal funds rate anchored in a range between 3.5%-3.75%.

The rate sets overnight funding costs for banks but influences a broad range of consumer and business borrowing. The committee in its post-meeting statement made few changes to its view on the economy, with a slightly faster pace of growth and higher inflation projections for the full year in 2026.

Despite the elevated uncertainty, officials again signaled they still expect a few rate cuts ahead. The closely watched "dot plot," which reflects individual members' rate projections, pointed to one reduction this year and another in 2027, though the timing remains unclear.

Of the 19 FOMC participants, seven signaled they expected rates to stay unchanged this year, one more than the last update in December. While future years showed a fairly wide disbursement of forecasts, the median outlook is for an additional cut in 2027 before the funds rate steadies out around 3.1% for the long term.