Federal Reserve Meeting Minutes: Elevated Energy Prices to Continue Driving Upward Pressure on Overall Inflation in the Near Term

Odaily reported that the minutes of the Federal Reserve meeting showed participants expect elevated energy prices to continue exerting upward pressure on overall inflation in the near term. Participants generally anticipated that the impact of tariffs on core goods inflation would gradually diminish this year. However, some participants noted that tariff rates could increase further from current levels, leading to greater upside risks to inflation. Several participants emphasized that after several consecutive years of inflation running above 2%, persistently high inflation could have a more significant impact on wage and price-setting decisions. Nearly all participants pointed out that the conflict in the Middle East could persist for a prolonged period, or that even if the conflict ends, oil and other commodity prices might remain elevated for longer than expected. In such a scenario, participants expected that supply chain disruptions, high energy prices, or the pass-through of rising input costs to other prices would continue to fuel inflation. The vast majority of participants indicated that the time needed for inflation to return to the Committee's 2% target could be longer than they previously anticipated, with risks having increased. (Jin Shi)