Fed lowers US growth projections for 2014, 2015

Mar 20, 2014 9:36 AM PHT

Agence France-Presse

SUMMARY

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But it says the unemployment rate will fall faster than forecast

A view of the White House in Washington, DC. AFP PHOTO/Brendan SMIALOWSKI

WASHINGTON, United States – The Federal Reserve cut back its US economic growth forecasts for this year and next on Wednesday (Thursday, March 20 in Manila) but said the unemployment rate would fall faster than it forecast in December.

The Fed said the economy was expected to grow 2.8% to 3% in 2014 and 3% to 3.2% in 2015.

Those figures took 0.2 percentage points off the high end of the range for both years.

But the Fed also forecast that the unemployment rate would drop to 6.1% to 6.3% this year – compared with the previous 6.3% to 6.6% range estimate – and to 5.6% to 5.9% in 2015.

In the update of its economic forecasts, the US central bank left its view of inflation largely unchanged, saying it could be as high as 1.6% this year and 2% next. – Rappler.com