(WXYZ) — New revelations from the Federal Reserve are deepening concerns about the economy and higher prices.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell acknowledged the ongoing tariffs from the Trump administration have started to push up inflation and will likely slow down the central bank's efforts to bring costs back down this year.
Because of that, the fed is holding interest rates steady at around 4.5%.
It's been an economic whirlwind from tariffs to inflation and the stock market swings, and it's generated a lot of uncertainty for metro Detroiters.
The interest rates staying steady means if you're borrowing money to buy a car or house, you won't be paying more interest, but you also won't be paying less. It's a sign the Federal Reserve is bracing for prices to go up as the year goes on.
"But we kind of know there are going to be tariffs. And they tend to bring growth down," Powell said on Wednesday. "I do think with the arrival of the tariff inflation further progress may be delayed."
Yale's Budget Lab says the 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada along with the combined 20% tariffs on Chinese imports will cost the average household between $1,600 and $2,000, and the increases will hit people in the lowest income brackets the hardest, with about $1,100 less disposable income.
"We’ve got some investments that have declined in value and we just have to wait and see like anything with the stock, kind of ride it out," John Jeffire said.
"To me, there’s a lot of anxiety about how we’ll be able to maintain our lifestyle and how far down our investments are going to go and will they last us our lifetime?" Connie Jeffire added.
A financial advisor did recommend not looking at your accounts every day, keeping money you'll need for the next year out of the stock market and restructuring your portfolio if needed.
The Federal Reserve does expect to bring interest rates down at some point this year. The next opportunity will be in May.
