Comment on Federal Reserve says US economic growth is slowing

WASHINGTON – The Federal Reserve on Wednesday suggested it would not raise interest rates in 2019, a dramatic about-face that suggested the central bank’s worries about the economy are intensifying. “Growth is slowing somewhat more than expected,” Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said at a news conference. “While the U.S. economy showed little evidence of a slowdown in 2018, the limited data we have so far this year have been somewhat more mixed.” The Fed cut its growth forecasts to 2.1 percent for this year and 1.9 percent in 2020, significantly below the White House predictions of 3.2 percent this year and 3.1 percent next. [Subscribe to our free morning newsletter and get the latest headlines in your inbox] The Fed entered this year predicting the economy would grow 2.3 percent and two more rate hikes would be necessary to keep the economy from overheating, but the Fed pulled back significantly a few weeks later as European and Chinese outlooks deteriorated and U.S.