Wall Street Journal
The Federal Reserve appears to be on a path to raise interest rates by another 0.75 percentage point this month in the wake of Chairman Jerome Powell’s public pledge to reduce inflation even if it increases unemployment.
Fed officials have done little to push back against market expectations of a third consecutive 0.75-point rate rise in recent public statements and interviews ahead of their Sept. 20-21 policy meeting. …
They face two main questions heading into their Sept. 20-21 meeting that are likely to determine whether to approve another 0.75-point rate rise: How much higher do they expect to raise rates in coming months, and what steps do they take to get there?
Several officials have signaled a desire to raise the fed-funds rate closer to 4% by year’s end—or about 1.5 percentage point higher than its current level. That could be accomplished in rate increases of various sizes at each of the three remaining Fed meetings this year.
The hawkish approach would point to a 0.75-point rate rise at the coming meeting, followed by smaller increases at the next two, analysts said.
