WASHINGTON — Confidence is growing that the economic rebound will strengthen. To make sure it does, the Federal Reserve is considered certain to hold interest rates at record lows this week.
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and his colleagues open a two-day meeting today at a time when the economic outlook has been brightening. Employers are creating jobs, Americans are spending more, and manufacturers are boosting production.
Other signs point to a bumpy recovery. Unemployment remains near double digits and is expected to stay high all year. Banks aren’t lending at normal levels, and loan demand is still low.
Despite a burst in home sales as buyers took advantage of a federal tax credit, the housing market is fragile.
For all these reasons, the Fed is all but certain to leave its key bank lending rate between zero and 0.25 percent.
The Associated Press
