U.S. Fed cuts benchmark rate by another 0.25%p to 4.25-4.5%

The U.S. Federal Reserve wrapped up its monetary policy for the year by cutting its benchmark interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point at a regular meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) in December.

Including this time, the U.S. benchmark interest rate fell to 4.25% to 4.5% as the Fed cut interest rates for the third consecutive time.

As a result, the interest rate gap between Korea and the U.S. has narrowed to 1.5 percentage points.

The Fed's additional cuts to interest rates at the end of the year are interpreted as aimed at staving off an economic downturn and boosting the economy while price management has paid off to some extent.

However, from next year, the second Trump administration's tariff bomb and other policies are expected to control the pace of interest rate adjustments as they are feared to cause inflation, raising the possibility of a conflict with Trump, who prefers low-interest rates.