Fed Leaves Rate At 1%, But Lays Groundwork For A Future Tightening; Stocks, Bonds Take It Hard; FOMC no longer assures stimulative policy will last for "considerable period".(A)

Byline: JED GRAHAM

The Federal Reserve held its key interest rate at a 45-year low of 1% Wednesday and signaled it's in no hurry to wean the economy from its aggressively stimulative monetary policy.

But the Fed watered down its assurance that no rate hike would be needed "for a considerable period," saying instead that it "can be patient" in tightening policy.

Treasuries retreated after the Fed's statement, with 10-year yields backing up to 4.19% from 4.05% just prior to the announcement. That move reversed most of the decline in bond yields that followed the surprisingly weak December employment report on Jan. 9. Stocks also gave up some recent gains after the Fed …