Economists polled by Reuters see a slim chance of a rate increase at the conclusion of the Fed`s two-day policy meeting on Wednesday, with the majority expecting one at the meeting in December.
"The last thing the Fed wants is to disrupt financial markets with a big surprise," said Torsten Slok, chief international economist at Deutsche Bank.
The Bank of Japan on Wednesday added a long-term interest rate target to its massive asset-buying program in an overhaul of its policy framework aimed at accelerating achievement of its 2 percent inflation target.
The BOJ said it would continue to buy long-term government bonds, but abandoned its base money target and instead set a "yield curve control" under which it will buy long-term government bonds to keep 10-year bond yields at current levels around zero percent.
The Fed`s rate-setting committee will release its policy statement at 2 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT). Fed Chair Janet Yellen is scheduled to hold her quarterly press conference half an hour later.
The 17 Fed policymakers will have to balance a strong labor market, marked by an unemployment rate of 4.9 percent and job gains that are outpacing population growth, with inflation that is still well below the central bank`s 2 percent target and weak August readings for manufacturing and service industry activity.
They have appeared increasingly divided on the urgency for a rate increase.
Fed governors Lael Brainard and Daniel Tarullo both recently reiterated they want to see firm evidence of rising inflation before resuming monetary tightening.
The Fed`s preferred measure of inflation remains low at 1.6 percent and has been below target for more than four years.
But recent comments from a number of moderate policymakers suggest a degree of impatience is building.
Atlanta Fed President Dennis Lockhart said last week there should be a "serious discussion" about a rate hike at this week`s meeting, while San Francisco Fed President John Williams, seen as a close Yellen ally, said two weeks ago that he would prefer to raise rates "sooner rather than later."
Boston Fed President Eric Rosengren, usually seen as a policy dove, also noted earlier this month that the risks to the economy were "becoming increasingly two-sided." That remark initially led markets to start pricing in a September rate surprise, although those expectations have since receded.
With Yellen unlikely to tip the committee`s hand forcefully either way, a compromise could assuage concerns.
"That`s precisely what the outcome of the meeting is likely to be: No move at this meeting, but a relatively low bar for hiking in December," Roberto Perli, a partner at Cornerstone Macro LLC, said in a note to clients.
The Fed also holds a policy meeting in early November, but investors have all but ruled out a rate move just days before the U.S. election.
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