 WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - The Federal Reserve's Federal Open Market Committee on Wednesday left its key interest rate at an historic low range of 0% to 0.25% and said its $600 billion bond-buying program would end as scheduled on June 30. Attention now turns to Fed chairman Ben Bernanke's first-ever news conference scheduled to begin at 2:15 p.m. Eastern. So the Fed’s decision to permit high unemployment for an extended period rests on his shoulders. Inflation has picked up and the Fed now says the economic recovery is proceeding at "a moderate pace," but the central bank still said the inflation pickup will be temporary and the jobs market is still a concern. The expected value of a decision is the odds of each possible outcome multiplied by the benefit (or cost) of that outcome.
– No surprises from the Fed today: Rates are staying low, and its $600 billion bond-buying program remains on track to end in June, reports MarketWatch. The Fed sees the economic recovery moving at a "moderate pace" and downplayed the risks of inflation. Far more interesting will be Ben Bernanke's first-ever press conference at 2:15pm EST to explain the Fed rationale. David Leonhardt at the New York Times says business reporters "shouldn’t let him get away with the evasions and half-answers that members of Congress too often allow Fed chairmen during their appearances on Capitol Hill." A big one to ask: "Why has Mr. Bernanke decided to accept widespread unemployment for years on end, even though he believes he has the power to reduce it?"