The Federal Reserve slashed interest rates by half a percentage point on Tuesday in the wake of concerns that the coronavirus outbreak could damage the US economy.
It's the first unscheduled, emergency rate cut since 2008, and it also marks the biggest one-time cut since then. The new benchmark interest rate is 1% to 1.25%.
While the fundamentals of the US economy remain strong, "the coronavirus poses evolving risks to economic activity," the central bank said in a statement.
