Financial markets reacted negatively to the news. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, which had been up nearly 70 points before the 2:15 p.m. Eastern time announcement, quickly reversed course and ended the day down 16.52 points at 10836.95.

The decision leaves the Fed's target for the federal funds interest rate at 4.75%, the level at which it has been since November. The Fed manipulates the fed-funds rate, at which banks lend to each other overnight, by buying and selling government securities. The Fed Tuesday left unchanged the discount rate, at which it lends directly to banks.

The Fed's policy-making Federal Open Market Committee traditionally ends each session with a statement on where it believes rates are headed inthe weeks ahead. In the past, the statement was supposed to be kept confidential for six weeks, although the press sometimes reported it earlier and Fed officials sometimes gave away the secret in speeches.