The Federal Reserve Bank (Fed) announced that it has reduced the interest rates by 25 basis points, in the range of 3.75% to 4%, according to analysts’ forecasts. It is noted that this is the second consecutive rate cut this year.

In addition to cutting interest rates, the Fed announced it will end its tapering of asset purchases – a process known as quantitative tightening – on December 1. By a 10-2 vote, the central bank’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) cut interest rates to the range of 3.75%-4% as noted above.

Governor Stephen Mirran again voted against, preferring the Fed to move more aggressively with a 50 basis point cut. St. Louis Fed President Jeffrey preferred the Fed not to taper at all.

The Fed rate is a benchmark for a range of consumer products, including car loans, mortgages and credit cards. The decline came despite the fact that the Fed has essentially been operating blindly on economic data lately due to the shutdown.

Apart from last week’s release of the consumer price index, the government has suspended data collection and reporting, meaning key figures such as non-farm payrolls, retail sales and a host of other macroeconomic data are unavailable.

In the statement issued after the meeting, the committee acknowledged the uncertainty that accompanies the lack of data due to specifying how it categorized general economic conditions. “Available indicators suggest that economic activity is growing at a moderate pace. Employment growth has slowed this year and the unemployment rate has risen slightly but remained low through August. The most recent indicators are consistent with these developments,” the statement said. “Inflation has increased since the beginning of the year and remains at relatively high levels.”

Each of these descriptions represents modifications of the September statement. The most important change is the view about general economic activity. In September, it reported that activity had slowed.

The statement echoed Fed officials’ concerns about the labor market, saying “downside risks to employment have increased in recent months.”

Even before the shutdown, evidence had begun to accumulate that while layoffs had moderated, the pace of hiring had stabilized. At the same time, inflation remained well above the Fed’s annual target of 2%. Last week’s inflation report, released because of its importance to Social Security’s cost-of-living adjustments, showed the annual rate was 3 percent, boosted by higher energy costs as well as various items directly or indirectly linked to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs.