Federal Reserve officials discussed concerns about how the policies of President-elect Donald Trump will impact the central bank’s commitment to bring inflation back down to its 2% target — and investors have rapidly adjusted their expectations for interest rates in 2025, fearing higher rates for longer.
by Derek Saul
Forbes
Key Facts
– The minutes from the hawkish Dec. 18 meeting of the Fed’s policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee, which came out Wednesday afternoon, revealed the root of the pause from Fed staff: The looming shift in Washington.
– “The effects of potential changes in trade and immigration policy suggested” restoring 2% inflation “could take longer than previously anticipated,” according to the minutes.
– And “almost all” Fed officials “judged that upside risks to the inflation outlook had increased,” the release stated.