Federal Reserve issues FOMC statement

In conjunction with the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting held on March 17–18, 2026, meeting participants submitted their projections of the most likely outcomes for real gross domestic product (GDP) growth, the unemployment rate, and inflation for each year from 2026 to 2028 and over the longer run. Each participant’s projections were based on information available at the time of the meeting, together with her or his assessment of appropriate monetary policy—including a path for the federal funds rate and its longer-run value—and assumptions about other factors likely to affect economic outcomes. The longer-run projections represent each participant’s assessment of the value to which each variable would be expected to converge, over time, under appropriate monetary policy and in the absence of further shocks to the economy. “Appropriate monetary policy” is defined as the future path of policy that each participant deems most likely to foster outcomes for economic activity and inflation that best satisfy his or her individual interpretation of the statutory mandate to promote maximum employment and price stability. The Fed held rates steady. There was one dissent. The median rate “dot” was unchanged, as was the 12-7 split on cuts vs. no cuts. The median core PCE inflation forecast revised to 2.7% from 2.5%. The median long-run rate “dot” revised up to 3.1%. pic.twitter.com/5qflQVsz6A FED PROJECTIONS SHOW SEVEN POLICYMAKERS SAW NO RATE CUT IN 2026, ONE SEES RATES HIGHER IN 2027 FED POLICYMAKERS SEE 4.4% UNEMPLOYMENT RATE AT END OF 2026 VERSUS 4.4% IN DECEMBER PROJECTIONS

Good morning. I’m pleased to be here with Senior Deputy Governor Carolyn Rogers to discuss today’s monetary policy decision. Today, Governing Council maintained the policy interest rate at 2.25%. We’ve held the policy rate at this level since October. The Canadian economy continues to face heightened uncertainty related to US trade policy and geopolitical risks. Now the war in Iran has added a new layer of uncertainty. Its impact on the global and Canadian economies will depend on how long the conflict lasts and the extent to which it spreads across the Middle East. Inflation in Canada has been close to the 2% target for more than a year. But, as we’ve seen, the war in Iran is causing oil prices to move sharply higher and this will push up inflation in the short term. BANK OF CANADA WILL NOT ALLOW THE EFFECTS OF HIGH ENERGY PRICES TO BECOME PERSISTENT INFLATION - GOVERNOR TIFF MACKLEM BANK OF CANADA WILL NOT ALLOW THE EFFECTS OF HIGH ENERGY PRICES TO BECOME PERSISTENT INFLATION - GOVERNOR TIFF MACKLEM

PART OF IRAN'S SOUTH PARS PETROCHEMICAL FACILITIES HAVE BEEN ATTACKED - TASNIM IRAN SAYS ASALUYEH OIL INDUSTRY FACILITIES ATTACKED: STATE TV APNewsAlert: DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranian state media say natural gas facilities associated with offshore South Pars field attacked, without elaborating. IRAN’S ENERGY HEART JUST GOT HIT An attack struck South Pars — the site behind ~70% of Iran’s natural gas. Damage is still unclear, but this area has shut down before after strikes. What changed: This comes as tensions rise, with recent strikes in Iran and Lebanon and… pic.twitter.com/CglR0bjqqC Iran’s state-run media report an attack on facilities at its key South Pars offshore gas field - Iranian state-run media say that facilities associated with Iran’s massive offshore South Pars natural gas field came under attack Wednesday. Both Iranian state television and the state-run IRNA news agency reported on the attack targeting facilities at Asaluyeh in Iran’s southern Bushehr province. It did not immediately elaborate. Iran shares the offshore field in the Persian Gulf with Qatar, which it has repeatedly attacked during the war along with other Gulf Arab nations. It wasn’t clear if Israel or the United States had carried out the attack. However, the U.S. has been operating primarily in southern Iran. The U.S. previously attacked Iran’s Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf, its main oil terminal.