Fed dissent grows as some officials weigh return to interest rate hikes amid stubborn inflation

Several policymakers wanted language about potential rate increases in official announcement, meeting minutes show

Eric Revell /FOXBuisness

Federal Reserve policymakers were mostly in agreement on the decision to leave interest rates unchanged despite two calling for cuts, though several signaled that rate hikes could be on deck if inflation remains elevated.

The minutes for the January meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the Fed’s monetary policy-setting panel, were released Wednesday and showed that some policymakers were in favor of including language signaling the possibility of future rate hikes to tame stubborn inflation in the announcement.

The FOMC voted 10-2 to leave the benchmark federal funds rate at its current range of 3.5% to 3.75%, with Fed governors Christopher Waller and Stephen Miran dissenting over concerns about the labor market. Inflation has remained elevated above the Fed’s 2% target, which has given others pause about further rate cuts.

“Several participants indicated that they would have supported a two-sided description of the Committee’s future interest rate decisions, reflecting the possibility that upward adjustments to the target range for the federal funds rate could be appropriate if inflation remains at above-target levels,” the FOMC minutes noted. Read more, see video and graph here.

Trump ready for ‘sustained’ strikes on Iran as US military executes ‘unprecedented’ Middle East buildup

Caitlin Doornbos / NEW YORK POST

A massive US military buildup in the Middle East suggests the US could be ready to launch a “sustained” bombing campaign on Iran in weeks — or even days — should Tehran continue refusing President Donald Trump’s demands in ongoing negotiations.

With a second aircraft carrier en route to the region and a flood of hundreds of strike, support and other aircraft already nearby, the sheer scale of forces now positioned in the region alone is highly unusual — and unprecedented in recent decades, former Pentagon official and Atlantic Council fellow Alex Plitsas told The Post.

“What we have amassed is an unprecedented size combination of land-based attack aircraft, command and control and sea-based platforms,” he said. “We haven’t seen a buildup like this in this region in decades.”

While last year’s Operation Midnight Hammer took just 25 minutes to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities, a new campaign could last days to weeks, US officials told The Post.

The deployment — including carrier strike groups, land-based aircraft, refueling tankers and command-and-control assets — gives Trump the option to launch what Plitsas described as a sustained air and naval campaign without committing US ground troops. Read more and see photos here.