Fed keeps rate near zero and sees brighter economy in 2021
Associated PressWASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve said Wednesday that it will keep buying government bonds until the economy makes “substantial” progress, a step intended to reassure financial markets and keep long-term borrowing rates low indefinitely. Chair Jerome Powell said he and other Fed officials expect the economy to rebound at a healthy pace next year as viral vaccines become widely distributed. “The Fed’s forward guidance is disappointingly vague,” Winograd said, and could lead investors to force up interest rates sooner than the Fed would prefer. The Fed’s latest policy statement coincides with an economy that is stumbling and might even shrink over the winter as the raging pandemic forces new business restrictions and keeps many consumers at home.