The US Federal Reserve voted to hold interest rates on Wednesday despite White House pressure to lower borrowing costs. Policymakers continue to monitor the economic impact of three interest rate cuts last year. Trump is soon expected to announce a replacement for Fed chair Jerome Powell, whom the president has frequently criticised for not reducing interest rates quickly enough. Despite the dissents, the Fed board stressed improvements in recent economic data, which gave policymakers confidence to hold rates steady. Powell previously said he believed the federal investigation stemmed from Trump's anger that the Fed had not brought interest rates down quickly enough.