The Fed delivered a string of 75-basis-point and 50-basis point rate hikes in 2022 in its battle to curb inflation that had climbed to 40-year highs. Only 'a few' participants outright favored a larger half-percentage-point increase at the meeting, or said they 'could have supported' it. 'Almost all participants agreed that it was appropriate to raise the target range of the federal funds rate 25 basis points,' with many of those saying that would let the Fed better 'determine the extent' of future increases, said the minutes, which were released on Wednesday.Īt the same time, 'participants generally noted that upside risks to the inflation outlook remained a key factor shaping the policy outlook,' and that interest rates would need to move higher and stay elevated 'until inflation is clearly on a path to 2%.'

1 meeting said policymakers agreed rates would need to move higher, but that the shift to smaller-sized hikes would let them calibrate more closely with incoming data. In language that suggested a compromise between officials worried about a slowing economy and those convinced inflation would prove persistent, minutes from the Jan. central bank's last policy meeting, but also indicated that curbing unacceptably high inflation would be the 'key factor' in how much further rates need to rise.

WASHINGTON, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Nearly all Federal Reserve policymakers rallied behind a decision to further slow the pace of interest rate hikes at the U.S.

Federal reserve next meeting