Fed likely to raise interest rates: Here’s how it might affect you

The Federal Reserve is set to hike interest rates for the first time since slashing them to near zero levels amid the onset of the pandemic two years ago.

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the panel of Fed officials in charge of the central bank’s monetary policy, is almost certain to announce an increase to the federal funds rate, its baseline interest rate range, at the end of its meeting Wednesday. The range was set between 0 and 0.25 percent in March 2020 to stimulate the economy with low borrowing costs.

Two years later, the U.S. economy has recovered rapidly from the quickest collapse in modern history, but at the cost of high inflation. The central bank is hoping to cool off rising inflation without denting several months of strong job growth.