Fed Keeps Interest Rates at Zero, Says Hike Appropriate ‘Soon’

Fed Keeps Interest Rates at Zero, Says Hike Appropriate ‘Soon’
The U.S. Federal Reserve said Wednesday it would hold interest rates near zero, even as it edges closer to removing some of the extraordinary stimulus provided to financial markets since the coronavirus hit in March 2020.The benchmark U.S. short-term interest rate will remain in the current range between 0% and 0.25%, according to a statement Wednesday from the Fed’s monetary-policy panel, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC).The Fed also released a separate statement announcing it intends to “significantly” reduce the size of its balance sheet “in a predictable manner” after rate hikes start.Crypto traders are monitoring the report because some…