Fed facing a blurrier outlook as it meets to weigh rate hike

The Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) – The Federal Reserve is grappling with a hazier economic picture, clouded by turmoil in the banking industry and still-high inflation, just as it meets to decide whether to keep raising interest rates or declare a pause.

Most Fed watchers expect the central bank to announce on Wednesday afternoon a relatively modest quarter-point hike in its benchmark rate, its ninth hike since March of last year.

Yet for the first time in recent memory, there remains some uncertainty about what the Fed will announce when it issues its policy statement at 1 p.m.

The Fed’s policymakers will also try to peer into the future and forecast the likely path of growth, employment, inflation and their own interest rates.

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3/22/2023 9:03:12 AM (GMT -5:00)