Upon completion of their meeting today, the Federal Reserve announced they have kept the Federal Funds Target Rate in a target range of 0.00% to 0.25%. There will be no change in the Prime Rate today. The Prime Rate remains at 3.25%.
The Federal Reserve is finishing up a two day policy meeting today and will make an announcement at 2:15 pm Eastern. At the last meeting they decided to lower the Federal Funds Target Rate to a target range of 0.00% to 0.25%. They also indicated rates would be held low for a while. That action resulted in the Prime Rate going down to 3.25%.
It’s not clear what to expect today. They certainly will want to do something to positively impact consumers and business. But having previously lowered the rate to near zero percent, their options seem limited. We’ll keep an eye on their decision and report back later regarding the effects this meeting will have on interest rates.
Previously we noted Californian’s who file early may get their refund on time if they file before February 1. If you haven’t heard yet, California is out of money and can’t pay income tax refunds on time this year.
Apparently, the door is already shut on currently getting an income tax refund. See the Sacramento Bee and ABC News stories on this.
It is not known how long Californian’s will have to wait for their refunds. The information could not be found at http://www.sco.ca.gov, the State Controller’s website.
