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Federal Reserve officials were worried about that Slow progress towards Low inflation and concern about the sudden strength of the US economy remaining at their meeting in June — so much so that some even wanted to raise interest rates last month, rather than hold them steady as the central bank eventually did, meeting minutes show.
feed it Officials decided to leave interest rates unchanged at the June 13-14 meeting to give themselves more time to see how the 10 consecutive increases they made previously affected the economy. High interest rates slow the economy by making it more expensive to borrow and spend money, but it takes months or even years for their full effects to show.
At the same time, officials released an economic forecast that indicated they would increase by a quarter point this year. This forecast should have sent the message that Fed policymakers were simply slowing down the pace of interest rate increases by canceling the meeting. They did not stop their attack on rapid inflation.
Minutes of the meeting, released on Wednesday, reinforced the message that more rate hikes were likely and provided more detail on the June debate — underlining that Fed officials are divided over how the economy is shaping up and what to do about it.
All 11 Fed voting officials supported the June rate hold, but that consensus masked tensions beneath the surface. Some central bank officials – 18 in all, including 7 who did not vote on policy this year – have been leaning towards raising interest rates.
The minutes emphasized how difficult this moment is for the Fed. Inflation has decreased significantly year-on-year, but this is partly due to lower food and fuel prices. The measure of inflation that excludes those volatile categories—known as core inflation—makes progress even more head-down. That caught the Fed’s attention, especially given the signs that the broader economy is holding up.
Since the Fed meeting, officials have continued to signal that more interest rate increases are expected. Chairman of the Federal Reserve Jerome Powell he said during last week’s appearance on the Madrid He expects to continue at a slower rate of interest rate increases – but he did not rule out officials returning to successive interest rate moves.
feed it Officials decided to leave interest rates unchanged at the June 13-14 meeting to give themselves more time to see how the 10 consecutive increases they made previously affected the economy. High interest rates slow the economy by making it more expensive to borrow and spend money, but it takes months or even years for their full effects to show.
At the same time, officials released an economic forecast that indicated they would increase by a quarter point this year. This forecast should have sent the message that Fed policymakers were simply slowing down the pace of interest rate increases by canceling the meeting. They did not stop their attack on rapid inflation.
Minutes of the meeting, released on Wednesday, reinforced the message that more rate hikes were likely and provided more detail on the June debate — underlining that Fed officials are divided over how the economy is shaping up and what to do about it.
All 11 Fed voting officials supported the June rate hold, but that consensus masked tensions beneath the surface. Some central bank officials – 18 in all, including 7 who did not vote on policy this year – have been leaning towards raising interest rates.
The minutes emphasized how difficult this moment is for the Fed. Inflation has decreased significantly year-on-year, but this is partly due to lower food and fuel prices. The measure of inflation that excludes those volatile categories—known as core inflation—makes progress even more head-down. That caught the Fed’s attention, especially given the signs that the broader economy is holding up.
Since the Fed meeting, officials have continued to signal that more interest rate increases are expected. Chairman of the Federal Reserve Jerome Powell he said during last week’s appearance on the Madrid He expects to continue at a slower rate of interest rate increases – but he did not rule out officials returning to successive interest rate moves.
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