US Fed Meeting LIVE Updates: Fed expected to cut interest rates by a quarter point

US Fed Meeting LIVE Updates: The US Federal Reserve is expected to announce a 25-basis-point rate cut on Thursday (November 7) as it concludes its two-day Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting. Wall Street experts and economists widely forecast this reduction, with Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s rate-setting panel anticipated to lower the federal funds rate for the second time this year following a 50-basis-point cut in September.

According to a Reuters poll conducted from October 23-29, all 111 economists surveyed expect a quarter-point rate cut on November 7, while over 90% predict a similar reduction in December, which would place the federal funds rate in a 4.25%-4.50% range by year-end.

The Fed initiated its rate-cutting cycle in September with a half-point reduction, responding to cooling inflation, though recent economic data remains mixed. While overall inflation continues to slow, with the annual rate falling to 2.4% in September from 2.5% in August, core inflation—which excludes volatile food and energy prices—ticked up to 3.3%.