WASHINGTON >> With the U.S. economy on solid footing and unemployment at a near-decade low, the Federal Reserve remains in the midst of a campaign to gradually raise interest rates from ultralows. But this week it’s all but sure to take a pause.

The Fed is widely expected to keep its key short-term rate unchanged after having raised it in March for the second time in three months. Most analysts foresee the Fed raising its key rate again at least twice more before year’s end, a testament to the durability of the U.S. economic recovery and a more stable global picture.

One reason for the Fed to stand pat this week is that even though the job market has shown steady strength, the economy itself is still growing in fits and starts.

Consumer spending flat for second month

WASHINGTON >> U.S. consumers cut back sharply on buying durable goods such as autos in March, leaving overall spending unchanged for a second straight month.

A slowdown by consumers was a major reason overall economic growth slowed so sharply over the winter. Consumer spending was unchanged in March after also being flat in February and posting only a modest rise of 0.2 percent in January, the Commerce Department reported Monday.

For the January-March quarter, the sharp slowdown in consumer spending was a key reason growth, as measured by the gross domestic product, slowed to an annual rate of just 0.7 percent, the poorest performance in three years.

U.S. construction spending down in March

WASHINGTON >> U.S. builders trimmed construction spending slightly in March, one month after building activity hit an all-time high.

Construction spending slipped 0.2 percent in March to a seasonally adjusted $1.218 trillion, the Commerce Department reported Monday. In February it rose 1.8 percent to a record high of $1.22 trillion.

The result in March reflected drops in nonresidential construction and in the government sector, which offset a strong increase in residential activity. Even with the slight decline, March activity was the second highest on record.

ON THE MOVE

HomeBridge Financial Services in Hawaii has announced that Wendy Workman is its mortgage loan originator. She will specialize in residential mortgage loan refinancing and origination. Workman has nearly 30 years of mortgage industry experience, including as senior underwriter at Homestreet Bank and underwriter at Wells Fargo.

Alston Hunt Floyd & Ing has hired Kira M. Kawakami as an associate for the firm. Her focus will be business and corporate law while handling civil litigation matters as well. Prior to joining the firm, Kawakami served as a legal intern for the U.S. Department of Justice’s U.S. Trustee Program and an extern for Judge Lawrence Reifurth at the state Intermediate Court of Appeals.