Fed Signals Openness to Rate Hikes

2026-04-08 18:11 By Joana Taborda 1 min. read

Some Fed officials favoured a two-sided framing of future rate decisions, highlighting that additional increases could be warranted if inflation persists above target levels, minutes from the last FOMC meeting in March showed.

The vast majority of participants judged that upside risks to inflation and downside risks to employment were elevated, and the majority of participants noted that these risks had increased with developments in the Middle East.

A prolonged conflict in the Middle East would likely lead to more persistent increases in energy prices and these higher input costs would be more likely to pass through to core inflation.

The Fed left the federal funds rate steady at the 3.5%–3.75% target range for a 2nd consecutive meeting in March 2026, in line with expectations.

However, policymakers still signaled one reduction in the fed funds rate this year and another in 2027, though the timing remains unclear.



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