#FOMCMeeting When the Federal Reserve decides what to do with interest rates to manage the economy, the data generally speaks for itself. Policymakers, for example, knew they needed to rush to cut interest rates in 2020 when the gears of trade came to a sudden halt at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. Two years later, when inflation reached a 40-year high and jobs were plentiful, the central bank raised borrowing costs to cool the economy and control prices.