Happening Now: Fed Chair Jerome Powell speaks on interest rates, economy

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is expected to announce the first interest rate cuts by the central bank in more than a year on Wednesday afternoon.

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) has maintained a range of 5.25 percent to 5.5 percent since July of last year — the highest such range in 23 years.

The range is expected to drop by at least a quarter of a percentage point, although Powell has indicated that a return to the run of bargain-basement rates spanning the 2008 financial crisis through the pandemic isn’t planned.

Still, even a modest reduction should help further alleviate mortgage rates, which are now at least back to the levels seen in February 2023.

WGN’s Chip Brewster is providing live coverage beginning at 2:15 p.m. EDT.