Anticipated Fed Rate Cuts 2024. At the september 2024 federal open market committee (fomc) meeting, the federal reserve (fed) lowered interest rates by 50 basis points, easing monetary policy for the first time in four years due to progress on the fed’s dual. The fed on wednesday lowered its benchmark rate by 0.50 percentage points, a critical pivot after the central bank introduced a flurry of rate hikes to tame the pandemic's high.

Why did the fed increase the interest rate? The fed kicked off a cycle to lower rates over the next 12 to 18 months in september, lowering its benchmark interest rate by half a percentage point and penciling two.