US Fed makes larger half-point cut in first reduction since 2020

WASHINGTON (AFP)

The US Federal Reserve decided in a meeting Wednesday to cut its benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points, after eight consecutive meetings of maintaining the rate.

The US central bank announced that it reduced the interest rate by half a percentage point to a range of 4.75 to five percent.

The Federal Reserve had held interest rates steady for eight consecutive meetings since March 2022.