US Fed raises key interest rate by 25 basis points
United States Federal Reserve's Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) announced on Wednesday its decision by increasing its key interest rate by 25 basis points to between 4.5% and 4.75% to keep combating the rising trends in inflation, which has somewhat reduced but remained elevated.
In its monetary policy statement, the Fed stressed that Russia's military operation in Ukraine is having a major impact on "elevated global uncertainty." Therefore, the FOMC remains "highly attentive to inflation risks." It also noted the most recent data on the country's economy showed a "modest growth in spending and production," as well as a low unemployment rate.
The FOMC added it expects additional hikes in interest rates as a tool to bring inflation down to its target of 2%. It did not anticipate the pace of those raises but noted it will look into factors such as inflation, economic activity, and the cumulative tightening of monetary policy before deciding on that.