In comments on Friday, Philadelphia Fed President Harker reiterated that, GDP growth, inflation and the labour market are displaying considerable strength and indicate a robust economy. Although the participation rate is lower than he would like, the jobs market is more or less at full health. According to Harker, core inflation is on course to meet our target sometime this year or next and, if the economy continues to perform well, three modest rate hikes would be appropriate in 2017. Harker also commented that rising inflation expectations make it more likely that inflation will reach the 2% target. Although the ... (full story)