The Federal Reserve's rate-setting committee voted 9-3 to hold its benchmark interest rate steady at approximately 3.6% following two days of meetings, extending a streak of unchanged rates to five consecutive sessions.
The decision came despite persistently elevated inflation and rising energy prices linked to the Iran war. Three committee members dissented, advocating for a quarter-point rate increase: Beth Hammack, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland; Neel Kashkari, president of the Minneapolis Fed; and Lorie Logan, president of the Dallas Fed.
Inflation has remained above the Federal Reserve's 2% target for more than five years.