U.S. Fed's FOMC Meet: Powell likely to announce hike in interest rate

The Federal Reserve bank of the United States is expected to hike the interest rates by 25 basis points, to a range of 5% to 5.25%. This will be the highest rate since 2007.

This will be the 10th consecutive rate hike, if Jerome Powell announces raise in the interest rate. In the earlier FOMC meet that was held in March, the U.S FED hiked the interest rate by 25 basis points to 5% from 4.75%.

As per Financial Express, the upcoming Fed meeting is critical because markets may turn volatile if policymakers hike rates by 25 basis points as per expectations but do not signal a halt. The rate hike is widely expected due to the growing concerns of inflation. The U.S. commerce department in its report that was release on Friday, reported that the personal consumption expenditures price index excluding food and energy is up 0.3% from the previous month and 4.6% from a year earlier in March. Similarly, the Labour department's measure of employment expenses rose1.2% in the first quarter of 2023, up from 1% in the previous quarter.

Meanwhile, lawmakers led by Democrats have urged the Federal Reserve Bank to halt rate hikes to prevent too much damage to the economy.