Fed Pauses Rate Hike; Powell Sees Progress vs Inflation

Inflation may be cooling — just not yet fast enough for the Federal Reserve, Christopher Rugaber reported for the Associated Press (AP).

Photo Insert: The pause followed 10 straight hikes in 15 months.

Fed Chairman Jerome Powell offered a nuanced view Wednesday of how the Fed intends to address its core challenge at a time when inflation is both way below its peak but still well above the central bank’s 2% target: Give it more time, and maybe some help from additional interest rate hikes.

Powell also suggested that the trends that are needed to further slow inflation, from lower rents to slower-growing wages, are starting to click into place. The Fed decided Wednesday to forgo another increase in its benchmark interest rate, leaving it at about 5.1%.

The pause followed 10 straight hikes in 15 months — the fastest series of increases in four decades.

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