The Fed concluded its Board meeting Wednesday afternoon (April 28) by announcing that it was leaving interest rates unchanged with the key funds rate near zero per cent. The announcement is not surprising given most of the Central Bank leaders’ commitment to leave rates low for an ‘extended period’, but it is interesting to see following a month long crusade by a few economists and leaders to advocate for raising rates to stave off inflation.

In the minutes of the meeting, the board acknowledged that high unemployment, wages, spending, and tight credit markets are all major hurdles still to clear.

Still, the minutes indicated a mostly upbeat sentiment going forward among Board members who voted 9-1 to leave rates unchanged. Commentary included thinking that jobs were “beginning to improve” and that consumer spending had “picked up”. These two items go hand in hand as it takes stable jobs and confident consumers to spend money.

The dollar has had a fairly strong week, especially against its European counterparts. The Euro is slumping as the debt crisis among top European Union economies becomes more concerning everyday.

Greece has had its struggles well documented, but it was Spain and Portugal that took center stage on Tuesday as the S&P downgraded the credit rating for both countries, casting a dark cloud over each country’s ability to repay debt.

International Monetary Fund leaders have publicly commented on discussions of potential Euro bailouts for Greece in order to help its devastated economy.

Meanwhile, the dollar has become more appealing as things look brighter for the US economic future, relatively speaking. The Euro reached its low point since April 2009 earlier on Wednesday as it touched down at $1.3113. It has since rebounded to $1.3187 after the announcement of no rate hike from the Fed.

However, the long-term prospects for a significant dollar move against the Euro are high given the state of both economies and the certainty of a rate hike from the Fed at some point.

The British Pound was as low as $1.5124 earlier before jumping back to the $1.52 level. The dollar is worth 94.3 yen 1.0077 Canadian dollars in mid-day New York currency trade as speculators digest the minutes following the rate announcement.