The U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) said Wednesday that the economy is growing moderately, holding off on taking any further steps to aid the recovery. The central bank said in a statement following a two-day meeting that the job market has improved slightly, but unemployment remains high. It said that the housing market has also improved somewhat, but remains depressed. The bank said "an increase in inflation should be only temporary". The Fed said that it continues to plan on keeping its key short-term interest rate near zero through at least late 2014, and it announced no new plans to purchase bonds after a current program ends in June. It was widely expected to keep its policy unchanged. The decision to stay-the-course was approved by a nine to one vote of the Fed's key policy panel, the Federal Open Market Committee, which is made up of board members in Washington and five regional bank presidents. President of the Richmond Fed Jeffrey Lacker, opposed, as he has in two past meetings, the late 2014 target date. According to the statement, Lacker did not think economic conditions warrant a record low rate.
