Central Bank around the world cut interest rate

By Keith Weir and Daniel Trotta LONDON/NEW YORK (Reuters) –

Central banks around the world cut interest rates in unison on Wednesday in a joint response to the global financial crisis, giving a boost to battered stock markets.

The Fed said it was cutting its key federal funds rate by 50 basis points to 1.5 percent. China, the European Central Bank (ECB) and central banks in Britain, Canada, Sweden and Switzerland also cut rates in the coordinated response which analysts had been demanding. U.S. stock index futures leapt on the news and world stock markets trimmed their losses.