NEW YORK (AP) — The Federal Reserve cut its benchmark interest rate Wednesday for the first time in nine months. Since the last cut, progress on inflation has slowed while the labor market has cooled. That means Americans are dealing with both high prices and a challenging job market. The federal funds rate, set by the Federal Reserve, is the rate at which banks borrow and lend to one another. While the rates that consumers pay to borrow money aren’t directly linked to this rate, shifts in Fed policy affe ...