(PatriotWise.com) — During the June Federal Open Market Committee policy meeting, officials with the Federal Reserve said they expect additional interest rate hikes before the end of the year but at a slower pace, The Epoch Times reported.
According to the meeting minutes, participants cited the economic outlook and persistent inflation as the reason additional rate increases may be needed to cool inflation.
Additionally, officials still expect a recession before the end of the year.
In June, the Fed decided not to increase its benchmark borrowing rate for the first time in 15 months.
However, the government reported in late June, the economy grew at an annual pace of 2 percent from January through March, much higher than the previous 1.3 percent estimate.
That economic growth, coupled with the booming job market, makes it more likely that the Federal Reserve will increase its benchmark borrowing rate at least two more times before the end of the year, the Associated Press reported.
In May, US employers added 339,000 jobs, bringing the unemployment rate to 3.7 percent.
Last Friday, the Labor Department released its June jobs report showing an additional 372,000 jobs were added, with an employment rate of 3.6 percent, the New York Times reported.
And while the June jobs report eases concerns about a recession, the booming jobs market complicates the Federal Reserve’s efforts to combat inflation since Fed officials have said that unemployment would need to get above 4 percent for inflation to cool.
The economy has been adding jobs at a rapid pace since the COVID lockdowns in the spring of 2020 erased over 20 million jobs, with Americans enjoying unusual job security as businesses have been reticent to lay off staff in a worker-friendly jobs market.
According to the June jobs report, while the private sector has finally returned to its pre-pandemic lockdown job numbers more than 3 years later, the public sector remains 664,000 jobs below its pre-pandemic rate.
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