Finance & Currencies
Federal Reserve holds rates as three call for hike
The US Federal Reserve kept interest rates at 3.50 to 3.75 percent on Wednesday for a fifth straight meeting, while three policymakers dissented and called for a quarter-point increase to fight inflation.
Fed chair Kevin Warsh said after the decision that the US economy was showing “impressive resilience, with recent shocks,” and rejected suggestions he was reluctant to act against high prices.
“We are on the job. We will deliver. We are focused like a laser,” Warsh said, adding that there was “no magic wand” to lower inflation quickly.
Warsh, who was nominated by President Donald Trump, has said since taking office in May that he wanted a “good family fight” at rate-setting meetings. On Wednesday, he said he got one.
“Most of our discussion were on the big questions that matter to the conduct of monetary policy. We didn't sort of hide from them,” Warsh told reporters. “There was a lot more interaction between and among my colleagues. It was a real family fight.”
Regional Fed presidents Lorie Logan, Beth Hammack and Neel Kashkari voted against the majority, according to the earlier account. It is rare for that many Federal Open Market Committee members to differ from the majority vote.
Fed Governors Christopher Waller and Lisa Cook have also signaled concern about inflation in recent weeks.
Trump, who has pressed the central bank to lower rates, praised Warsh on Wednesday and claimed without evidence that other board members were making decisions on a political basis.
The Fed's preferred inflation gauge hit 4.1 percent year on year in May, with new data due later this week. US consumer inflation eased to 3.5 percent year on year in June but remained above the Fed's long-term two-percent target.
The Fed aims to keep inflation near two percent while seeking maximum employment. Raising rates tends to constrain economic activity, while lowering them can support employment but may add to inflation pressure.
After the meeting, 30-year US Treasury yields hit their highest levels since 2007, indicating that traders expected a slower approach to tackling inflation to take longer to work. Major US stock indices lost more than 1.5 percent on Wednesday, driven in part by the Fed's decision.
Update
Thirty-year US Treasury yields hit their highest levels since 2007 after the Fed decision.
Major US stock indices lost more than 1.5 percent on Wednesday, driven in part by the Fed decision.
President Donald Trump praised Kevin Warsh and claimed without evidence that other Fed board members were making decisions on a political basis.
Fed Governors Christopher Waller and Lisa Cook had also signaled concern about inflation in recent weeks.
The Fed's preferred inflation gauge hit 4.1 percent year on year in May, with new data due later in the week.
Source note: AFP news report published on 29 July 2026 at 20:53:54 UTC.
Update
Fed chair Kevin Warsh said the economy was showing “impressive resilience, with recent shocks.”
Warsh said there was “no magic wand” to lower inflation quickly and said the Fed was focused on the task.
Warsh described the meeting debate as a “real family fight.”
Source note: AFP news report published on 29 July 2026 at 19:35:12 UTC.
Update
Regional Fed presidents Lorie Logan, Beth Hammack and Neel Kashkari were the three voting policymakers who dissented from the decision to hold rates.
Fed chair Kevin Warsh was due to address a press conference after the decision.
Bets on a rate increase rose in the days leading up to the meeting, according to CME's FedWatch tool.
Source note: AFP news report published on 29 July 2026 at 18:12:27 UTC.
Update
The US Federal Reserve held interest rates steady.
Three dissents called for a rate hike.
Source note: AFP news report published on 29 July 2026 at 18:01:53 UTC.
Update
The US Federal Reserve held interest rates steady on Wednesday.
The Fed kept rates at 3.50-3.75 percent for a fifth straight meeting.
Three of 12 policymakers dissented and called for a quarter percentage point rate hike.
The Fed's language on inflation, unemployment and economic activity was unchanged from its previous rate decision.
The Fed described inflation as elevated.
Source note: AFP news report published on 29 July 2026 at 18:03:21 UTC.
Update
Most investors expect the Fed to hold rates at 3.50 to 3.75 percent for a fifth straight meeting, according to CME's FedWatch tool.
Analysts said some policymakers may dissent in favour of a rate hike.
Gregory Daco of EY-Parthenon said the meeting is unusual because Fed chair Kevin Warsh has not publicly shared his current thinking on the economic outlook.
Diane Swonk of KPMG said she does not expect a rate hike but expects dissents.
Swonk said she is pencilling in two rate hikes for later this year.
Source note: AFP news report published on 29 July 2026 at 02:21:27 UTC.
Update
The Federal Open Market Committee opened its two-day meeting on Tuesday.
Investors were giving a more than 30 percent probability that a rate hike could come on Wednesday, according to CME's FedWatch tool.
The item says all eyes will be on whether any voting members dissent if rates are held steady.
Donald Trump made new comments about Fed chair Kevin Warsh on Monday.
Source note: AFP news report published on 28 July 2026 at 14:43:59 UTC.
Uncertainty notes
The future path of Fed rates remains unresolved.
The next reading of the Fed's preferred inflation gauge was due later in the week.
Source
AFP news report published on .