Finance

Fed explains why it held rates steady in February and March, watches rising healthcare and energy costs

The U.S. Federal Reserve disclosed why it kept the primary credit rate unchanged at 3.75 percent in February and March. Minutes showed no support for changing rates, and the Fed also maintained the federal funds target range at 3.5 to 3.75 percent and interest on reserves at 3.65 percent at a joint March meeting. Officials cited stable economic conditions, limited hiring gains and moderate wage growth, while noting rising non-labor costs in healthcare and energy.

AI & Enterprise

Respondology launches AI agent platform to automate social media comment replies

Respondology has launched Respond, an AI agent-based platform that automatically manages and replies to social media comments, SiliconANGLE reported. The company said more than 97 percent of comments receive no response because answering each one is not feasible. Respond uses AI agents trained in a brand’s voice to classify comments by intent and respond naturally, avoiding formulaic chatbot replies. SiliconANGLE said some users are increasingly resistant to automated brand responses.