Fed Officials to Hold Rates, Weigh Oil Shock: Decision-Day Guide

March 17, 2026, 11:00 PM UTC

Investors will be looking to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell this week for insight on how the US central bank is weighing a range of risks to the economy amid US-Israeli strikes on Iran.

Officials are expected to hold their benchmark interest rate steady for a second consecutive meeting in a range of 3.5% to 3.75%. But policymakers are likely having a robust discussion over the ways the war in the Middle East could put pressure on both sides of their mandate — and whether responding to the threat of slower growth could add fuel to inflation that’s been above ...

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