Fed officials hesitant to slash interest rates as coronavirus fears batter markets - Business Insider

A television screen headlines trading on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Monday, Jan. 27, 2020.Federal Reserve officials signaled this week that it was too early to tell whether the central bank would need to step in to address potential coronavirus effects.Concerns about the respiratory illness rose Tuesday after the Centers for Disease Control said the US should prepare for the outbreak to hit communities across the nation.

At the same conference a day earlier, Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said it was difficult to assess the magnitude of the economic effects. She said the central bank would closely monitor the coronavirus but did not want to "overreact to the volatility in the markets." The Fed lowered interest rates three times last year, bringing them to a historically low target range of between 1.5% and 1.75%. With low unemployment and strong consumer activity, policymakers have since said they were comfortable with current borrowing costs.

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