US Federal Reserve raises interest rate by 25 basis points - Sarmad

The U.S. Federal Reserve decided earlier to raise interest rates by 25 basis points, in line with expectations for a rate hike. This marks the first rate increase in over three years.

It is worth noting that the Fed last raised interest rates at its July 2023 meeting. Since then—and prior to today’s Wednesday meeting—it has cut rates six times, totaling 175 basis points, or 1.75 percentage points.

In 2025, the Fed lowered interest rates three times (by a quarter of a percentage point each), while keeping rates unchanged in five previous meetings. In the current year, 2026, the Fed has kept interest rates unchanged in five consecutive meetings since the start of the year, maintaining the rate range at 3.5% to 3.75%.