On February 22 local time, the Federal Reserve released the minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) monetary policy meeting from January 31 to February 1.

According to the release of the meeting minutes, the Fed said that while there were signs that inflation was falling, it was not enough to offset the need for further rate hikes and that inflation was "remaining well above" the Fed's 2% target.

It follows that "the labor market remains very tight, leading to continued upward pressure on wages and prices." As a result, the Fed decided to raise the target range for the federal funds rate by 25 basis points, the smallest increase since March 2022 magnitude.

According to the minutes of the meeting, almost all participants supported the decision and agreed to continue to raise interest rates until inflation is under control.

  At the same time, many participants said that the process of raising the US debt ceiling for too long could pose "significant risks" to the financial system and economy.

Some participants saw the prospect of a recession in 2023 rising.

Some participants said that the job market is "very tight," with labor demand outstripping supply, and a persistently tight job market will put upward pressure on inflation.

(CCTV reporter Xu Tao)

  (CCTV news client)