The Latest: Fed sees faster growth, 3 rate hikes in 2018

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the Federal Reserve's monetary policy meeting (all times local):

2:10 p.m.

Federal Reserve policymakers expect U.S. economic growth will accelerate next year and the unemployment rate will fall to 3.9 percent from its current level of 4.1 percent. But they still plan to raise short-term interest rates three times next year and at least twice in 2019, the same as previous estimates.

Fed officials sharply increased their growth projection for 2018, to 2.5 percent from 2.1 percent in September. Some analysts thought the faster growth would cause the Fed to pencil in four rates next year, rather than three.