A two-day meeting of the US Federal Reserve System ended yesterday, following which the regulator kept the interest rate on federal funds in the range from 0% to 0.25% per annum. At the same time, in 2022, the central bank intends to raise the key rate three times, although in September it was planned to raise the rate only once. In addition, the Federal Reserve has decided to reduce the volume of asset repurchases by $30 billion: from January, monthly purchases of US Treasuries will be reduced by $20 billion (up to 40 billion), mortgage bonds – by $ 10 billion (up to $ 20 billion). The decisions of the Central Bank coincided with the forecasts of economists and market participants. The US central bank also raised its inflation estimate this year (from 4.2% to 5.3%) and next year (from 2.2% to 2.6%). In its statement describing inflation, the Fed confessed that this is no longer a «temporary phenomenon.» As you know, inflation in the United States in November 2021 reached a record high since 1982. The growth rate of consumer prices accelerated from October 6.2% to 6.8% in annual terms. On a monthly basis, consumer prices rose by 0.8%. It is worth noting that the Fed's inflation target is 2%. Markets reacted with growth to the Fed's decision to accelerate the winding down of the stimulus program. All leading US stock indexes rebounded from daily lows: The Dow Jones Industrial rose to 35,927.43, the S&P 500 rose to 4,709.85 points, and the Nasdaq Composite rose to 15,565.58. Oil futures also rose: the January contract for WTI crude oil on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose to $71.92 per barrel. Brent crude oil rose to $74.84 per barrel.
