The Federal Reserve on Wednesday increased its benchmark interest rate by a quarter-point following a steady stream of upbeat employment and inflation data. The short-term rate is now at a range of 0.75 percent to 1 percent.
It is the second time in three months and the third time in 15 months that the Fed has raised the interest rate, after holding it near zero for almost a decade during and after the Great Recession. Any further hikes this year are expected to be "gradual," The Associated Press reports.
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