U.S. FEDERAL RESERVE EXPECTED TO HIKE KEY INTEREST RATE THIS MONTH AND AGAIN IN MAY
Mar 14, 2023
By Bob Komsic
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Inflation south of the border eased a touch in February compared with the month before but is still high.
American consumer prices rose 0.4%, just below the 0.5% increase in January.
However, so-called core prices; which exclude volatile items such as food and energy, were reversed — up 0.5% last month, slightly higher than January’s 0.4% gain.
It’s core prices that the central bank pays particular attention to as a measure of underlying inflation pressures.
As a result, the U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to hike its key interest rate 0.25% next week and again in May, when it could be in the 5%-5.25% range.