Fed's Yellen: 'Considerable time' is highly conditional and linked to assessment of the economy

The Federal Reserve remained on its easy-money course Wednesday, allaying market fears that it might start raising interest rates sooner than expected.

In a statement released following its two-day meeting, the U.S. central bank left largely intact key provisions, despite expectations in some quarters that it would indicate a tightening bias.

(For mobile users, please click here to see the live blog in a web browser)