Tonight, the U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) will announce its first interest rate decision of 2026. The decision will be released at 11:00 p.m. Baku time, followed by a press conference at 11:30 p.m., where Chairman Jerome Powell will answer questions from journalists. Economists and market participants widely expect the Fed to keep rates unchanged in the 3.5%–3.75% range. While this may sound routine, the implications are anything but: the Fed’s rate policy sends powerful signals to the U.S. economy, global financial markets, and the dollar itself. Interest rates shape investment flows, currency valuations, and bond markets worldwide.
The post Federal Reserve set to hold rates as markets await Powell’s first decision of 2026 first appeared on The South Caucasus News – SouthCaucasusNews.com.
