Fed minutes show 3 dissenters backed quarter-point rate hike
What's new: Officials signaled more tightening could come if inflation stalls, even after the committee held rates at 3.5%-3.75%.
Minutes from the Federal Reserve’s July 28-29 meeting showed several officials believed interest rates may need to rise if inflation does not keep easing, while three policymakers dissented in favor of an immediate quarter-point increase. The Federal Open Market Committee voted 9-3 to leave the federal funds rate unchanged at 3.5% to 3.75%. The dissenters were Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack, Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan and Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari. The minutes said some participants also questioned whether financial conditions were restrictive enough to return inflation to the Fed’s 2% target. Since the meeting, traders have shifted to expecting the Fed to stay on hold until December.