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Given still-weak labor market improvements, the Federal Open Market Committee today left unchanged its assessment that it will be "considerable time" before the Fed moves to raise interest rates.

The FOMC, at the close of its two-day monetary policy setting session, noted there is still room for improvement before the Fed is moved to suggest changing its federal funds target rate – now at 0 to 0.25 percent – anytime soon.

Curt Long, NAFCU's chief economist and director of research, noted the Fed's focus on employment and consumer prices. "The employment report was much weaker than we've become accustomed to," he said. "Likewise, core inflation was flat for August, providing no immediate impetus for the Fed to prepare markets for an upward movement in interest rates."

The Fed is meanwhile slowing its monthly purchases of asset-backed securities, a program it is expected to end next month.