CNN BUSINESS | Fed pledges to keep interest rates near zero for years

New York (CNN Business) – The Federal Reserve committed Wednesday to do more to help the US economic recovery, promising more asset purchases and lower interest rates for even longer than it previously expected.

The Federal funds rate remained unchanged at zero to a quarter percentage point, and will stay there until America’s labor market has recovered “consistent with the Committee’s assessments of maximum employment” and the inflation rate has risen to 2%, and is on track to exceed that level for some time.

Given the country is still down 11.5 million jobs since February and the consumer price inflation rate over the past 12 months stood at 1.3% last month, this seems like a long way off.  —more—