Live from NPR News in Washington, on Corvo Coleman, the Federal Reserve has left short-term

interest rates alone.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell says prior rate hikes have affected housing prices and investments

and more time is needed for full effect.

But Powell says Fed policymakers think it's prudent to pause rate hikes for now.

Nearly all committee participants expect that it will be appropriate to raise interest

rates somewhat further by the end of the year.

But at this meeting, considering how far and how fast we've moved, we judged it prudent

to hold the target range steady, to allow the committee to assess additional information

and its implications for monetary policy.

The Fed has boosted interest rates by 5 percentage points since early last year.

The Union representing West Coast dock workers has come to a tentative labor agreement with

the association representing the shipping industry.

As NPR's Andrea Schu reports, the deal comes after more than a year of negotiation.

The International Longshore and Warehouse Union represents 22,000 dock workers at 29

ports up and down the West Coast.

Their last contract with the Pacific Maritime Association expired almost a year ago.

The two sides had agreed to bargain in good faith, but in recent months, as the talkstried

dawn, West Coast ports were plagued by intermittent work stoppages, leading some shipping companies

to redirect container ships to other ports.

On either party released details of the tentative deal, they did acknowledge that acting labor

secretary Julie Sue had played a key role.

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