By Howard Schneider WASHINGTON - The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady on Wednesday and policymakers signaled borrowing costs are still likely to fall this year, but slowed the overall pace of expected future rate cuts in the face of estimated higher inflation flowing from the Trump administration's tariff plans.

The Fed, helmed by Chair Jerome Powell, is expected to hold rates steady this month despite pressure from President Donald Trump to make cuts.

Federal Reserve officials on Wednesday collectively penciled in two quarter-point cuts to interest rates by the end of 2025, matching expectations in the market. Policymakers’ median estimate of where the federal-funds rate target range will be at the end of 2025 is for 3.