LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - The US central bank hiked interest rates as expected and said it was now clear that rates needed to be raised and that balance sheet run-off should begin.
Underscoring that need, in its policy statement, the Federal Open Market Committee, the Fed's main decision-making organ, said that unemployment had fallen "substantially" while supply-demand imbalances, energy prices and broader price pressures were all pushing inflation higher.

Running down its holdings of Treasury and agency debt, and agency mortgage-backed debt was expected to begin "at a coming meeting", the FOMC added.

In a nod to the conflict in Ukraine, policymakers said that its implications for the US economy were "highly uncertain", although in the near-term it was likely to drag on the economy while adding to inflation.

The Fed also said it was open to adjust its policy stance if risks emerged for meeting the Committee's goals.

Wednesday's decision was not unanimous, St.Louis Fed President, James Bullard, voted for a 50 basis point interest rate hike to 0.5-0.75%.

Looking ahead, the meeting materials published alongside the FOMC's policy statement, rate-setters were currently anticipating six more interest rate hikes for over the course of 2022.

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