Economy, Low Interest Rate | featured news

The Federal Reserve, hoping to give another shot in the arm to the pallid recovery, announced it would launch a new round of a controversial bond-buying stimulus program. The central bank also further extended its pledge to keep short-term interest rates near zero, now through the middle of 2015.

Japan’s central bank has cut its key interest rate to a range of zero to 0.1 percent, effectively introducing a zero interest rate policy.

Companies keep saving the money they’ve borrowed at low rates as they wait for the economy to improve, but it is unlikely to improve if they keep saving.

Unemployment is likely to stay high for a long time, two Federal Reserve officials said on Wednesday, suggesting the U.S. central bank is in no rush to raise its ultra-low interest-rate policy.

The Federal Reserve sounded a more confident note Wednesday that the economy is strengthening but pledged to hold rates at record lows to make sure it gains traction.

The stock market continued its advance of the past month after the Fed said it would keep interest rates low to revive the economy.