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Fed on track for 3 rate hikes in 2018, but 4? No sign in report to Congress
The Federal Reserve gave little hint in its latest report to Congress that it’s prepared to raise U.S. interest rates more aggressively in 2018, reflecting uncertainty among senior officials about how fast inflation will rise this year. In its semi-annual monetary policy report, the Fed saw broad improvement in the U.S. economy and pointed to a pickup in inflation toward the end of last year. Yet the central bank also stuck to its prior view that inflation is likely to hover at or below its 2% target in 2018. The 12-month rate of inflation based on the Fed’s preferred PCE index stood at 1.7% in December. Labor ... (full story)