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FOMC meeting explained: what happens at 2:00 and 2:30 pm

Eight times a year, a small group decides the price of borrowing money in the US. Here's what happens on the day, minute by minute.

Beginner guide · 7-minute read · Updated 2026-10-21

What the FOMC is

The FOMC (Federal Open Market Committee) is the part of the Federal Reserve that sets US interest rate policy. Its main tool is a target range for the federal funds rate: the rate banks charge each other for overnight loans.

That one rate ripples out to car loans, mortgages, business loans, bonds, the dollar and stocks. See how interest rates affect stocks for the chain.

The Fed has two goals, set by Congress: jobs for as many people as possible, and stable prices. For prices, it aims for 2% inflation, measured with the PCE price index.

Who votes

The committee has 12 voting members:

• the 7 members of the Fed's Board of Governors in Washington
• the president of the New York Fed
• 4 of the other 11 regional Fed bank presidents, who take turns each year

All 12 regional presidents join the meeting and talk, but only the voters decide. The Fed chair leads the committee.

How often it meets

• 8 scheduled meetings a year, about 6 weeks apart
• Each one usually runs 2 days
• The committee can also meet in between if something urgent happens

The dates are posted well ahead on the Federal Reserve's calendar.

The day, minute by minute (ET)

Here's the thing. Price can move at 2:00 pm, then move again at 2:30, sometimes the other way. That's why the FOMC day has two "news minutes", not one.

The statement: read what changed

The statement is short, often under a page. It says what the rate decision is and how the Fed sees the economy.

Traders often compare it word by word with the last statement. A single changed phrase about inflation or jobs can move price. Many news sites show both versions side by side within minutes.

Rate moves usually come in steps of 0.25 percentage points (often called "25 basis points"). Sometimes the decision is to hold rates where they are.

The dot plot

Four times a year (usually March, June, September and December), the Fed publishes the Summary of Economic Projections. It includes the "dot plot": each member puts a dot where they think rates should be in coming years.

The press conference

At 2:30 pm the chair takes questions. Answers can shift the mood. A hint that rates may stay high, or come down sooner, can move markets as much as the decision itself.

The quiet period before

Fed officials go mostly quiet about policy in the days before each meeting. This is called the "blackout" period. It means fewer speeches that week, and more focus on the data. Then the decision lands all at once.

Why markets react

Before the meeting, traders already guess what the Fed will do. Like any report, what moves price is the surprise: a different decision, a changed phrase, new dots, or a tone in the press conference that nobody expected.

The jobs report and the CPI report feed those guesses in the weeks before.

What a beginner can do on FOMC day

1. Know the date and both times. 2:00 pm and 2:30 pm ET. Set alarms for 1:30 pm.
2. No new trades from about 1:30 pm. Be flat, or decide in advance about any open trade, knowing stops can slip (Slippage) and spreads can widen.
3. Don't trade the first 2:00 pm candle. Price may jump, then reverse.
4. Wait until the press conference has been going a while. Many traders sit out the rest of the afternoon.
5. Keep your daily stop. Two losses and you're done for the day, Fed or not. See daily loss limits.

For a combined plan for CPI and Fed days, see CPI and FOMC days.

Common mistakes

• Forgetting the 2:30 pm press conference. The first move isn't the last.
• Reading the dots as a promise. They're forecasts that change.
• Trading the headline. "Fed holds rates" doesn't tell you where price goes next. The chart does.
• Missing the minutes. They come out about 3 weeks later, at 2:00 pm ET, and can move price too.

Questions