WASHINGTON — A measure of consumer sentiment ticked higher this month, after soaring in December and January, underscoring that Americans are starting to feel better about the economy.

The Federal Reserve kept its key interest rate the same Dec. 13 for a third straight time, and officials signaled they expect to make three quarter-point cuts to the benchmark rate next year.

The nation’s employers added a solid 199,000 jobs in November and the unemployment rate fell, fresh signs that the economy could achieve an elusive “soft landing.”

WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve kept its key short-term interest rate unchanged Nov. 1 but left the door open to further rate hikes if inflation pressures should accelerate.

WASHINGTON — The nation’s economy expanded at a robust 4.9% annual rate from July through September as Americans defied rising interest rates to spend at a brisk pace.

WASHINGTON — Measures of U.S. inflation in September showed that the pace of price increases is still grinding lower, though at a slow and uneven pace.

WASHINGTON — Employers added 336,000 jobs in September, an unexpectedly robust gain that suggests that many companies remain confident enough to keep hiring despite high interest rates.

WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve left its key interest rate unchanged Sept. 20 for the second time in its past three meetings, but also signaled it expects to raise rates once more this year.

The Federal Reserve said July 26 it no longer foresees a recession and raised its key interest rate by a quarter-point from roughly 5.1% to 5.3% — its highest level since 2001.

After two years of painfully high prices, inflation in the United States has reached its lowest point in more than two years — 3% in June compared with 12 months earlier.