What does the interest rake hike mean for you?

To stream WUSA9 on your phone, you need the WUSA9 app. Example video title will go here for this video WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve just raised the cost of money — bad news for borrowers, good news for savers. The Fed increased its benchmark interest rate Wednesday by a quarter-point, the first rate hike since the summer of 2023. The hike will likely make it even costlier to borrow for homes , autos and other purchases. But if you've been socking money away, you’ll probably earn a bit more interest on your savings.

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Scoop News DeskSpecific city/county not stated, Washington · Published Wednesday, September 16, 2026 at 7:27 PM UTCUpdated Wednesday, September 16, 2026 at 7:32 PM UTC

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When the central bank started raising rates to combat an outbreak of inflation in March 2022, the average rate on a 1-year CD was stuck at a miserly 0.15%, according to FDIC data published by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Wednesday’s move probably means interest rates on savings accounts and certificates of deposit are headed higher. Treasury yields have continued to rise despite an intervention from the Treasury after Secretary Scott Bessent ordered the U.S. to buy back government bonds in a bid to push yields down.