Key Points
- In what could be Jerome Powell’s final meeting as Fed chair, he and his fellow policymakers are likely to continue their cautious approach to policy as questions linger over inflation and the labor market.
- The interest rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee is a virtual lock to keep its benchmark short-term interest rate steady.
- With little drama over the rate decision — markets are pricing in a 100% chance of the FOMC staying on hold — attention will turn squarely to Powell’s future.
