U.S. Fed officials float even higher rates after brisk inflation data
BNN Bloomberg
U.S. Federal Reserve officials said interest rates may need to move to a higher level than anticipated to ensure inflation continues to fall, after fresh data showed prices rose at a brisk pace last month.
Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin, speaking in a Bloomberg TV interview Tuesday, said that “if inflation persists at levels well above our target, maybe we’ll have to do more.”
Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan said: “We must remain prepared to continue rate increases for a longer period than previously anticipated, if such a path is necessary to respond to changes in the economic outlook or to offset any undesired easing in conditions.” She spoke at Prairie View A&M University in Texas.
They both commented shortly after data showed consumer prices climbed 6.4 per cent in January from a year earlier, still far above the Fed’s goal for 2 per cent annual inflation, which is based on a separate measure.
