http://pix04.revsci.net/H07707/b3/0/3/0806180/739762235.js?D=DM_LOC%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.themuslimtimes.org%252Fwp-admin%252Fpost-new.php%26DM_CAT%3DNYTimesglobal%2520%253E%2520General%26DM_EOM%3D1&C=H07707WASHINGTON – The Federal Reserve said Wednesday that it intends to hold short-term interest rates near zero “at least through late 2014,” extending its most basic and longest-running response to the financial crisis by at least another 18 months.

The decision means that the Fed does not expect the economy to complete its recovery from the 2008 crisis over the next three years. By holding rates near zero, the Fed hopes to hasten that process somewhat by reducing the cost of borrowing.  Read more