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• FOMC Meeting : 14-15 March, 2017

The U.S. Federal Reserve raised interest rates on Wednesday for the second time in three months, a move spurred by steady economic growth, strong job gains and confidence that inflation is rising to the central bank's target.

The decision to lift the target overnight interest rate by 25 basis points to a range of 0.75 percent to 1.00percent marked a convincing step in the Fed's effort to return monetary policy to a more normal footing.

Fed Chair Janet Yellen pointed to growing faith in the economy's trajectory.

"We have seen the economy progress over the last several months in exactly the way we anticipated," Yellen said in a press conference following the end of a two-day policy meeting. "We have some confidence in the path the economy is on."

The Fed also stuck to its outlook for two additional rate increases this year and three more in 2018. The central bank lifted rates once in 2016.

U.S. job gains have averaged 209,000 per month over the past three months, well above the 75,000 to 100,000 needed to keep up with growth in the working-age population. The jobless rate is 4.7 percent, at or near a level consistent with full employment.

The Fed projected that the unemployment rate would fall to 4.5 percent this year and remain at that level through 2019.

"This seemed like a good time to remind Americans that ... sometimes it (inflation) is going to be below 2 percent, sometimes it is going to above 2 percent," Yellen told reporters. "Two percent is not a ceiling."

The Fed's projections showed the economy growing 2.1 percent in 2017, unchanged from its December forecast. The median estimate of the long-run interest rate, where monetary policy would be judged as having a neutral effect on the economy, held steady at 3.0 percent.

The rate increase came amid a broad improvement in the world economic outlook and a sense among Fed policymakers that the U.S. economy is close to the central bank's employment and inflation goals.

Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari was the only official to dissent in Wednesday's decision, saying he preferred to leave rates unchanged.

In the latest interest rate projections, also known as the dot plots, the central bank’s median forecast is for interest rates to end next year around 1.4%, unchanged from December. The Fed sees interest rates around 2.1% 2018, also unchanged from the previous forecast. The central bank sees interest rates rising to 3% by 2019, compared to previous estimate of 2.9%.

• Wall Street's top banks see two additional interest rate rises this year from the Federal Reserve and most expect at least three more in 2018, a Reuters poll showed Wednesday after the U.S. central bank lifted rates for the second time in three months.

These so-called primary dealers, or banks that do business directly with the Fed, were divided, however, on when they expect the Fed to outline its plans for trimming back its $4.4 trillion bond portfolio.

• The dollar index against a basket of major currencies extended losses from the previous day, when it slid more than 1 percent, to touch 100.490 .DXY, its lowest since Feb. 17.

The greenback took a knock after the Fed ended their two-day policy meeting on Wednesday by increasing interest rates but stuck to their projections of three total rate hikes in 2017, instead of the four some had grown to expect.

U.S. Treasury yields fell sharply in reaction to the Fed's stance, prompting the dollar to fall more than 1 percent against the yen. The dollar, which went as high as 115.195 yen earlier this week, last stood at 113.420 JPY=.

The euro climbed to a five-week high of $1.0740 EUR= early on Thursday, after surging 1.2 percent overnight.

• U.S. government debt prices were higher on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve announced an interest rate hike.

 Following the announcement, the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury notes, which moves inversely to price, was lower at around 2.509 percent, while the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond was also lower at 3.108 percent. The yield on the 2-year note was lower at 1.312 percent.

The yield on the 10-year note was around 2.575 percent ahead of the announcement.

Earlier in the day, the 2-year hit a high of 1.401 percent, its highest level since June 11, 2009, when the 2-yr yield was as high as 1.421 percent. The 2-year yield then turned negative and hit a low of 1.312 percent, its lowest level since March 7 when the 2-year yield was as low as 1.301 percent.

• Crude oil prices rose on Thursday in early Asian trading, extending gains from the previous session after official data showed U.S. stockpiles had eased from record highs.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was up 28 cents, or 0.6 percent, at $49.14 a barrel by 0010 GMT (8.10 p.m. ET), having surged 2.4 percent in the previous session to settle at $48.86, its first increase in eight days.

Brent futures climbed 34 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $52.15. They had their first increase in seven days on Wednesday, gaining 1.7 percent.

• The Netherlands' center-right Prime Minister Mark Rutte roundly saw off a challenge by anti-Islam, anti-EU Geert Wilders in an election on Wednesday, early returns showed, a huge relief to other EU governments facing a wave of nationalism.

"It appears that the VVD will be the biggest party in the Netherlands for the third time in a row," a beaming Rutte told cheering supporters at a post-election party in The Hague. "Tonight we'll celebrate a little."

With nearly 11 percent of votes counted, Rutte's VVD Party was projected to win 32 of parliament's 150 seats, down from 41 at the last vote in 2012, but ahead of Wilders who was in third place at 20 seats, according to data provided by the ANP Dutch news agency.

The Christian Democrat CDA was second with 21 seats, the data showed.

"It appears that the VVD will be the biggest party in the Netherlands for the third time in a row,"

Reference: Reuters, CNBC