The Federal Reserve ended its monthly bond purchase program on Wednesday and signaled confidence the U.S. economic recovery would remain on track despite signs of a slowdown in many parts of the global economy. It also said it would keep interest rates at near zero until it sees the economy improve further.
"The Committee continues to see sufficient underlying strength in the broader economy to support ongoing progress toward maximum employment in a context of price stability," the central bank's policy committee said in a statement following a two-day meeting. The U.S. central bank had been buying $15 billion a month in Treasurys and mortgage-backed securities as part of a program that had swelled its balance sheet past the $4.5 trillion mark in an effort to boost economic growth. Though it ended the program, the Federal Open Market Committee kept the "considerable period of time language" that investors had considered crucial in the central bank's map for when it would raise interest rates. The "considerable" time refers to when the Fed will begin raising rates after the end of the monthly bond buying.
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-- CNBC's Jeff Cox and Reuters