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The Federal Reserve said Wednesday it was not likely to raise the record low key interest rate until at least 2014.

The Fed held the federal funds rate — the rate banks charge each other — at a zero to 0.25% rate, where it has been since December 2008.

“Unless there is a substantial strengthening of the economy in the near term, it’s a pretty good guess we will be keeping rates low for some time,” Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said at a press conference Wednesday, the Associated Press reported.

The Fed said in a statement that the economy is growing moderately, despite some slowing in global growth, but held off on any further bond-buying programs to try to increase growth.

(Federal Reserve website.)