Some Fed Officials Support Moving Faster to Raise Interest Rate
By
Patrick T. Harker, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia and one of the Fed officials who vote on monetary policy. CreditCharles Mostoller/Bloomberg
WASHINGTON — The American economy appears to be avoiding the kind of winter swoon that has become an annual event in recent years, a turn for the better that could encourage the Federal Reserve to start raising its benchmark interest rate sooner.
At the Fed’s most recent meeting, on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1, “many participants” wanted to increase the benchmark rate “fairly soon” if the economy continued to grow, according to minutes published Wednesday.
But the minutes stopped short of suggesting a rate increase was likely at the Fed’s next meeting, in mid-March. They said that a core group of Fed officials remained cautious about the economic outlook, seeing balanced risks of faster and slower economic growth…
Some Fed Officials Support Moving Faster to Raise Interest Rate
