Reading the Fed: A Lender's Calendar for 2026–27
Every scheduled Federal Reserve policy meeting through 2027, which ones come with new economic projections, and what each release can move.
Why it matters
- Fed decisions move short-term benchmarks such as prime and SOFR almost immediately.
- Meetings with new economic projections often move longer-term yields more than ordinary meetings.
- Knowing the calendar helps lenders time rate locks, extensions and funding decisions.
Guide: a practical reference to keep on hand.
The Federal Open Market Committee, the Federal Reserve's policy-setting body, meets eight times a year. Each meeting can change the target range for the federal funds rate, which feeds directly into the prime rate and other short-term benchmarks that price credit lines and floating-rate loans.
This guide lists every scheduled meeting through 2027, according to the Fed's published calendar.
Remaining 2026 meetings
| Meeting | Economic projections |
|---|---|
| Oct. 27–28 | No |
| Dec. 8–9 | Yes |
2027 meetings
| Meeting | Economic projections |
|---|---|
| Jan. 26–27 | No |
| March 16–17 | Yes |
| April 27–28 | No |
| June 8–9 | Yes |
| July 27–28 | No |
| Sept. 14–15 | Yes |
| Oct. 26–27 | No |
| Dec. 7–8 | Yes |
The Fed notes that each meeting date is tentative until confirmed at the meeting before it. A meeting is also scheduled for Jan. 25–26, 2028.
What each meeting produces
- The policy statement, released on the final day of the meeting. It announces the decision on the federal funds target range and explains the committee's reasoning.
- A press conference by the Fed chair after the statement.
- The Summary of Economic Projections, at four meetings a year (marked "Yes" above). It includes each official's projection for growth, unemployment, inflation and the appropriate path of the policy rate, often shown as a chart of dots.
- Minutes, published about three weeks after each meeting, with more detail on the committee's discussion.
What each release can move
The rate decision moves short-term benchmarks. When the Fed raised its target range on Sept. 16, 2026, major banks raised the prime rate to 7% effective the next day. Credit lines and floating-rate loans priced off prime or SOFR reprice at their next reset.
The projections can move longer-term yields, because they signal where officials expect rates to go over several years. Longer-term yields anchor fixed-rate lending, including commercial mortgages and long-term rental loans.
The chair's press conference and the minutes can shift expectations between meetings, especially when they suggest a change in the committee's thinking.
How lenders use the calendar
- Rate locks and pricing: consider when a loan's rate will be set relative to the next decision.
- Extensions and maturities: loans maturing just after a meeting may face a different rate environment than when they were underwritten.
- Funding decisions: lenders with floating-rate credit lines can estimate when their cost of funds may change.
Sources
- Federal Reserve, Meeting calendars and information
- Federal Reserve, FOMC statement, Sept. 16, 2026
- WFAE, Charlotte banks raise prime lending rate to 7% after Fed hike
