Fed holds interest rates steady as two Trump appointees vote to cut them

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday left its key interest rate unchanged, a widely expected move that comes despite enormous pressure from the Trump administration to lower it.

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday left its key interest rate unchanged, a widely expected move that comes despite enormous pressure from the Trump administration to lower it.

The Fed, in a statement announcing the decision, said that economic growth had moderated in the first half of the year but that inflation remained “somewhat elevated.”

Two Federal Reserve board officials, both appointed by President Donald Trump, dissented from the decision, which has not occurred in more than three decades — a sign of both the economic uncertainty and the political pressure on the central bank.

At his news conference announcing the decision, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said the economy was not behaving as if it were being held back by the Fed’s current interest rate level, which helps set borrowing rates in the rest of the economy.

But he said there was still “a ways away from seeing where things settle down” with respect to Trump’s tariffs, which has kept overall uncertainty elevated and necessitates higher rates.