#美联储维持利率不变

# Federal Reserve Maintains Interest Rates

**Event Background:**

The Federal Reserve (Fed) decided to maintain the benchmark interest rate at its recent Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting. This decision is typically based on a comprehensive assessment of the U.S. economic conditions, inflation levels, employment market, and global economic environment.

**Key Point Analysis:**

1. **Interest Rate Levels:**

- The Fed has decided to keep the federal funds rate target range at **5.25%-5.50%**, the highest level since July 2023.

- This decision indicates that the Fed believes the current interest rate level is sufficiently tight to effectively control inflation while avoiding excessive pressure on economic growth.

2. **Inflation and Employment:**

- **Inflation Data:** Although the inflation rate has declined from its peak in 2022, it remains above the Fed's 2% target. The core PCE (Personal Consumption Expenditures) inflation rate is **2.9%** as of December 2024, indicating that inflationary pressures still exist.

- **Employment Market:** The U.S. labor market remains robust, with the unemployment rate held at a low **3.7%**, and non-farm payroll data continues to grow, indicating solid economic fundamentals.

3. **Economic Outlook:**

- The Fed's expectation for economic growth in 2024 is **1.4%**, a slowdown compared to **2.5%** in 2023, but still maintaining positive growth.

- The Fed anticipates that inflation will continue to decline in the coming months, but reaching the 2% target may take longer.

The Fed's decision to maintain interest rates reflects its cautious stance on the current economic conditions. Despite ongoing inflationary pressures, a strong labor market and gradually slowing economic growth have led the Fed to choose to hold steady. In the future, the Fed's policy path will heavily depend on economic data, and the market needs to closely monitor changes in inflation, employment, and the global economic environment.