Latest attempt to fight inflation.
The Federal Reserve is poised this week to accelerate its most extreme steps in three decades to attack inflation by making it costlier to borrow—for a car, a home, a business deal, a credit card purchase—all of which will compound Americans’ financial strains and likely weaken the economy.
Yet with inflation having surged to a 40-year high, the Fed has come under extraordinary pressure to be more aggressive in slowing spending and curbing price spikes that are creating hardship for households and companies.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said they will take these steps largely in the dark. No one yet knows just how high the central bank’s short-term rate must go to slow the economy and restrain inflation. Nor do the officials know how much they can reduce the Fed’s unprecedented $9 trillion balance sheet before they risk destabilizing financial markets.
Financial markets are pricing at a rate as high as 3.6 percent by mid-2023, which would be the highest rate in 15 years.
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- For wisdom for members of the Federal Reserve as they attempt to address inflation by raising interest rates.
- For Reserve Chair Powell as he heads the board.
- For God’s mercy to be upon this nation and its economy as U.S. officials make decisions and implement plans.
Sources: Wall Street Journal, CBN
