The central bank’s decision to pause at its first meeting of 2025 followed a series of cuts that began in September to account for progress already made on getting inflation down. Over the course of three meetings, the Fed lowered rates by a full percentage point to a range of 4.25 percent to 4.5 percent, which was maintained on Wednesday.

The Federal Reserve opted to leave its benchmark interest rate unchanged in its first policy meeting since President Trump's inauguration.

Consumers and traders are waiting to learn if the Fed’s pause is a one-meeting hold or the start of a longer stretch.

Fed chair Jerome Powell said he has not talked with Trump since the president demanded last week “interest rates drop immediately.”

That’s the prediction of Bank of America economists who think Canada’s central bank will cut 25 basis points on Jan. 29 and then hold its key rate at 3 per cent. “We expect the forward guidance to signal a pause as the BoC waits to see how both domestic activity and U.S. trade policy play out,” said the economists led by Carlos Capistran.

The Federal Reserve chair said banks are well suited to handle risks related to crypto customers, but the threshold for engaging in such activities directly is higher.

IBM projected constant currency revenue to grow 5% in the full year, above estimates for 4.81% growth. Meanwhile, the company forecasted free cash flow of $13.5 billion for the full year, above the $12.92 billion Wall Street had expected. IBM also said its generative AI book business now stands at more than $5 billion.

The Federal paused rate cuts after its first meeting of the year — here’s what that means for your credit card, mortgage rate, auto loan and savings account.

Nonetheless, already there is a clash with President Trump, who believes interest rates are “far too high." On his Truth Social platform, Trump went on the attack: Because Jay Powell and the Fed failed to stop the problem they created with Inflation,

The Federal Reserve kicked off its second Trump era right where it left off: Doing exactly what it wanted to do, ignoring President Donald Trump’s demands that it lower rates.

Welcome to Investopedia's live blog of the Federal Reserve's January meeting. Here, we will bring you the latest news on the Fed's decision, explain what it means, and provide analysis.