Documents show short-term rates unlikely to increase in June

WASHINGTON – Meeting minutes released last week from April’s Federal Open Market Committee gave weight to widespread reservations that short-term interest rate would increase by midyear.
Some Fed officials believe the U.S. economy’s sluggish first quarter was largely because of temporary factors and balked at the idea of raising benchmark interest rates at any time before consumer confidence improves, unemployment continues to fall and inflation grows, according to meeting minutes released last week.
The U.S. economy slowed during winter months, which the committee attributes to “transitory factors,” and labor market indicators point toward “underutilization of labor resources,” according to a statement.
The easy-money policies implemented following the economic crisis of 2008 have kept the central bank’s benchmark interest rates near zero, but last year Fed officials signaled the possibility of raising rates beginning in June 2015.
For now, however, it appears that is unlikely to happen.

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