WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve has decided to hold interest rates at a record low and pledged to keep them there for an "extended period" to nurture the economic recovery and lower high unemployment.
One member — Thomas Hoenig, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City — dissented from the Fed's decision to retain the pledge to hold rates at record lows. He says the economy has improved sufficiently to drop the pledge, which has been in place for nearly a year.
The Fed made no changes to an economic support program aimed at driving down mortgage rates and bolster housing, even as reports on home sales this week pointed to a fragile housing market.