federal reserve

Employment climbed more than forecast in January and the U.S. jobless rate unexpectedly fell to the lowest in three years, casting doubt on whether the Federal Reserve can wait until 2014 before raising interest rates.

The Federal Reserve said it was not likely to raise interest rates until the end of 2014, adding 18 months to the expected duration of its response to the slump.

The U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday said it will not raise interest rates until at least late 2014, even later than investors expected, in an effort to support a sluggish recovery.

In a major shift, the Federal Reserve will start announcing four times a year how long it plans to keep short-term interest rates at current levels, according to minutes from its December policy meeting.

In a major shift, the Federal Reserve will start updating the public four times a year on how long it plans to keep short-term interest rates at record lows, according to minutes from its December policy meeting.

Hugh Johnson, chairman of Hugh Johnson Advisors LLC, talks about volatility in the financial markets, Federal Reserve monetary policy and the outlook for U.S. stocks and economy in 2012.

The Federal Reserve said Tuesday that the U.S. economy has improved modestly as hiring and consumer spending have risen, and it's holding off on any new steps to boost the economy.

The Federal Reserve under Ben Bernanke has gone further than ever to explain its policies to the public.

Market indexes gained more than 4 percent and the Dow closed up 490 points after the Federal Reserve and central banks took action on the European debt crisis.

The Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank and the central banks of Canada, Britain, Japan and Switzerland said they had agreed to lower the cost of existing dollar swap lines.