The Federal Reserve says it will further cut its monthly bond purchases because the U.S. job market needs less help.

WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve struck an encouraging note Wednesday: It will further cut its bond purchases because the U.S. job market needs less help. And it said the economy had strengthened after all but stalling during a harsh winter.

The Fed also reaffirmed its plan to keep short-term interest rates low to support the economy “for a considerable time” after its bond purchases end, likely late this year. But it again offered no specific timetable for any rate increase. Most economists expect no rate increase before mid-2015 at the earliest.

The Fed’s guidance on short-term rates conforms to goals that Chair Janet Yellen noted in a speech this month. She said the Fed’s rate policies must be flexible enough to meet unexpected economic challenges.

The Fed’s description of an economy rebounding from the winter freeze was the only meaningful change it made from the statement it issued in March, after the first meeting that Yellen led after taking over in February.

Wednesday’s statement also repeated the theme the Fed sounded in March that even after the job market strengthens and it starts raising rates, it will likely keep rates unusually low to support a still-subpar economy.

Investors had little discernible reaction to the statement. Stock and bond prices both rose modestly.

The Fed’s decision was approved on a 9-0 vote.

Wednesday’s statement was issued the same day that the government said the economy’s growth slowed to a barely discernible 0.1 percent annual rate in the first three months of 2014, the weakest performance in more than a year. Economists blamed mainly the harsh winter and predicted that growth would rebound to a 3 percent annual rate or better in the current quarter. In its statement, the Fed made no specific mention of the anemic growth last quarter.

“It’s in the rear-view mirror,” said Greg McBride, senior financial analyst at Bankrate.com.