The committee left the target range for the federal funds rate unchanged, and reaffirmed our plan announced in December to end asset purchases in early March. In light of the remarkable progress we’ve seen in the labor market and inflation that is well above our 2 percent longer-run goal, the economy no longer needs sustained high levels of monetary policy support. That is why we are phasing out our asset purchases, and why we expect it will soon be appropriate to raise the target range for the federal funds rate. Of course, the economic outlook remains highly uncertain. Making appropriate monetary policy in this environment requires humility, recognizing that the economy evolves in unexpected ways. We’ll need to be nimble so that we can respond to the full range of plausible outcomes.