Federal Reserve officials at their March meeting still expected to lower interest rates this year, even with a high level of uncertainty from the Iran war and tariffs, according to minutes released Wednesday.
Most of the participants said the war could result in the need for easier monetary policy if rising gas prices hit the labor market and consumer wallets.
Policymakers said they would need to remain “nimble” as they weighed the impact the war had on inflation, which continued to hold above the Fed’s target, and hiring, which has been mostly flat over the past year.
“Many participants judged that, in time, it would likely become appropriate to lower the target range for the federal funds rate if inflation were to decline in line with their expectations,” the minutes stated.
The consensus anticipated one cut this year, unchanged from the last update in December.
