AP
Fed Boosts Key Rate a Quarter-Point
Tuesday May 3, 2:53 pm ET
By Martin Crutsinger, AP Economics Writer
Federal Reserve Boosts Key Interest Rate a Quarter-Point; Eighth Increase Since Last June
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Federal Reserve, caught between a sudden economic slowdown and heightened worries about inflation, decided to nudge a key interest rate up by another quarter-point on Tuesday.
The move, which had been widely expected by financial markets, pushed the federal funds rate up to 3 percent. It was the eighth increase in the interest that banks charge each other on overnight loans since the central bank began its credit tightening campaign last June.