Fed's Yellen reiterates she expects rate hike this year - USA TODAY
Fed's Yellen reiterates she expects rate hike this year Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen plans to tell Congress Wednesday that the Fed still plans to begin raising interest rates this year but that it will push them up gradually amid an... Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen told Congress Wednesday that the Fed still plans to begin raising interest rates this year amid an improving economy but that it will likely push them up gradually. On the economy, Yellen said, "Prospects are favorable for further improvement in the US labor market and the economy more broadly. In her semi-annual monetary policy testimony, she added that the Fed "expects US GDP growth to strengthen over the remainder of this year and the unemployment rate to decline gradually. Yellen added that low oil prices and job growth should bolster consumer spending while the negative effects of a strong dollar and low oil prices on exports and business investment diminish. She didn't provide more specifics about the timing of the first hike in the Fed's benchmark rate since 2006, reiterating that it will depend on the progress shown by the economy and labor market. others say the central bank is likely delay the move until December or even 2016. "We have no judgment about the opening date to raise the federal funds rate," she said. But Yellen acknowledged, "if we wait longer, when we begin to raise rates we might have to do it more rapidly. Source: www.usatoday.com
