Powell: Fed to keep hiking rates until it controls inflation

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER
AP Economics Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — Chair Jerome Powell has underscored the Federal Reserve’s determination to keep raising interest rates until it has brought inflation under control. It’s a high-stakes effort that carries the risk of causing an eventual recession. The Fed’s increases in its benchmark short-term rate typically lead, in turn, to higher borrowing costs for consumers and businesses, including for mortgages, auto loans and credit cards. The economy usually slows as a result. Powell said at a Wall Street Journal conference that the Fed needs to see inflation coming down in a clear and convincing way.