As widely anticipated by markets, the U.S. Federal Reserve's Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) concluded its meeting in the early hours of October 30 (Vietnam time) by announcing a 0.25% cut to the federal funds rate, adjusting the new target range to 3.75% - 4%. This decision marked the second consecutive rate reduction of the year, following a similar 25-basis-point cut just a month prior on September 18. The Fed's rationale for the cut centered on rising employment risks, a visible slowdown in economic growth, and persistent inflation that remains stubbornly around 3%, still hovering above the central bank's 2% target.

The decision passed with an 11-2 vote among FOMC members. The majority, which included Chair Jerome Powell, Vice Chair John Williams, and nine other governors and regional presidents, supported the 0.25% reduction. However, the vote exposed a split, with two dissents: Stephen Miran voted against the measure, advocating for a more aggressive 0.5% cut, while Jeffrey Schmid of the St. Louis Fed preferred to hold rates steady.

This pivotal meeting was conducted against an unusual backdrop: a significant shortage of economic data due to the temporary U.S. government shutdown. This shutdown delayed key reports, including the Nonfarm Payrolls and manufacturing output data, leaving the Fed with limited new information to guide its decision, aside from the CPI report released on October 24.

In his subsequent press conference, Chair Jerome Powell reiterated the economic risks, but made a more significant announcement: the Fed will terminate its Quantitative Tightening (QT) program, effective December 1. This program, which had been reducing the Fed's balance sheet by allowing assets to mature without reinvestment, will now end, a move widely seen as an implicit "stealth liquidity pump" into the financial system and a major turning point in the monetary easing cycle.