WASHINGTON, Dec 15 (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Reserve began a two-day policy meeting on Monday at which it is expected to lower interest rates toward zero and discuss emergency tools to end the country's year-long recession.
The gathering began at about 2 p.m., a Fed official said. The rate decision and accompanying policy statement is expected around 2:15 p.m. (1915 GMT) on Tuesday.
Economists expect the U.S. central bank to lower its target for benchmark overnight rates by at least a half-percentage point to 0.5 percent and clearly state that it will deploy so-called quantitative easing measures to restore growth. (Reporting by Alister Bull, Editing by Andrea Ricci)