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LINK: Federal Reserve policymakers see more interest rate hikes ahead
Federal Reserve officials signaled at their most recent meeting that additional interest rate hikes are necessary this year to bring inflation down to their 2% target, although many supported a slower pace of increases.
Minutes from the U.S. central bank's Jan. 31-Feb. 1 meeting released on Wednesday showed that policymakers worried an "insufficiently restrictive" policy stance could "halt recent progress in moderating inflationary pressures" and keep consumer prices elevated for a longer period.
"Participants observed that a restrictive policy stance would need to be maintained until the incoming data provided confidence that inflation was on a sustained downward path to 2%, which was likely to take some time," the meeting minutes said.
Although inflation has shown early signs of cooling off, it remains stubbornly high. The consumer price index climbed by 6.4% in January from the previous year, down from a high of 9.1% recorded in June but about three times the pre-pandemic average. The minutes show that officials remain determined to hold rates high as long as needed in order to tame inflation, even if it means risking higher unemployment or slower economic growth.
LINK: Federal Reserve policymakers see more interest rate hikes ahead
Federal Reserve officials signaled at their most recent meeting that additional interest rate hikes are necessary this year to bring inflation down to their 2% target, although many supported a slower pace of increases.
Minutes from the U.S. central bank's Jan. 31-Feb. 1 meeting released on Wednesday showed that policymakers worried an "insufficiently restrictive" policy stance could "halt recent progress in moderating inflationary pressures" and keep consumer prices elevated for a longer period.
"Participants observed that a restrictive policy stance would need to be maintained until the incoming data provided confidence that inflation was on a sustained downward path to 2%, which was likely to take some time," the meeting minutes said.
Although inflation has shown early signs of cooling off, it remains stubbornly high. The consumer price index climbed by 6.4% in January from the previous year, down from a high of 9.1% recorded in June but about three times the pre-pandemic average. The minutes show that officials remain determined to hold rates high as long as needed in order to tame inflation, even if it means risking higher unemployment or slower economic growth.
