McLean, Va. (July 30, 2025) — The Federal Reserve held the federal funds rate steady at a target range of 4.25% to 4.5% for the fifth meeting in a row. For the first time since December 1993, two members of the committee dissented, instead favoring a quarter-point cut to the federal funds rate. In announcing the decision, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said, “The economy is not performing as if overly restrictive monetary policy is holding it back.”
“Looking past the oscillations caused by trade, the latest GDP report showed continued spending by consumers on goods and investment in new equipment. Powell acknowledged that the current level of interest rates is not overly restrictive and the outsized demand for manufacturing technology in the first half of 2025 appears to confirm this outlook,” said Christopher Chidzik, principal economist of AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology. “Should the economy continue to operate at or near full employment as Powell has asserted in the past two meetings, further investment in manufacturing technology may be required to meet sustained consumer demand.”
