Rate hikes ‘likely’ this year in fight against inflation: Feds Jerome Powell

Published

2 years ago

July 4, 2023

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With inflation in the United States still excessive, most Federal Reserve officials expect to raise interest rates further this year, Chair Jerome Powell told a House committee Wednesday.

Inflation pressures continue to run high, and the process of getting inflation back down to 2% has a long way to go, Powell said on the first of two days of semi-annual testimony on Capitol Hill.

Even so, the Fed last week kept interest rates unchanged after 10 straight hikes so it could take time to gauge how higher borrowing rates have affected the economy, Powell said.

The contrast between the Feds stated concern over still-high inflation and its decision to skip a rate hike has heightened uncertainty about its next moves.

The hazier messaging suggests that Powell is seeking to balance competing demands from those Fed officials who want to keep raising rates and others who feel the central bank has done enough.

Asked on Wednesday to clarify last weeks messaging, Powell told the House Financial Services Committee that keeping rates level was consistent with the Feds increasing focus: Slowing the pace of its hikes in order to avoid raising rates higher than needed to reduce inflation and risk causing a deep recession in the process.

It may make sense to move rates higher but to do so at a more moderate pace, Powell said, likening the Feds rate hikes to a journey. As you get closer to your destination, as you try to find that destination, you slow down even further.

Partisan differences over the Feds policies emerged at the hearing, with Rep. Patrick McHenry, the North Carolina Republican who chairs the committee, saying the central bank must remain committed to eliminating this stealth tax on American workers and families, referring to inflation. And I urge you to continue that resolve.

Yet Rep. Maxine Waters of California, the senior Democrat on the panel, said the Fed made the right decision to pause interest rate hikes.

In his remarks Wednesday, Powell also indicated that the Fed chose to keep its key interest rate steady last week so it could assess the impact ofthree large bank failuresthis spring on the banking sector and whether the failures would reduce credit to consumers and businesses and slow the economy.

Despite the Feds focus on combating inflation, Republican committee members spent more time Wednesday questioning Powell about the central banks stance on bank regulation. McHenry suggested that Congress consider removing the Feds authority to regulate banks, if the policymakers take too strict an approach to overseeing small and medium-size lenders and potentially weaken lending.

After this years bank failures, Michael Barr, the Feds top financial regulator, indicated that the central bank might consider raising the level of capital that banks are required to hold in reserve against potential losses as a way to limit further failures.

But some committee Republicans argued Wednesday that requiring banks to hold more funds in reserve would restrict their ability to lend. Small businesses, they warned, would be especially hurt because they depend more on bank loans than do large companies, which can issue their own bonds. Reduced lending, they asserted, would weaken the economy.

Powell responded that any new such rules would likely focus on the largest U.S. banks those with more than $100 billion in assets, like Silicon Valley Bank and the other two institutions that failed. Community banks, by contrast, typically have under $10 billion in assets.

The Fed chair also said it could be several years before such rules would take effect. At the same time, he underscored that there is always a trade-off between requiring banks to hold certain levels of funds in reserve and encouraging lending. The challenge, he said, is to strike the right balance.

With inflation still well above the Feds 2% target, most economists have said they believe that a rate hike at its next meeting in late July is all but assured. What actions the central bank might take after that remains much less clear. The policymakers indicated last week that they expect to raise rates twice more this year. Yet they might not follow through if economic data suggests that inflation is falling quickly back to their target level.

Speaking at a news conference last week, Powell said there were no plans to raise rates at every other meeting or to follow any other particular time frame. Instead, as he reiterated Wednesday, Fed officials will monitor economic data and make their rate decisions meeting by meeting.

The central banks streak of rate increases have madeborrowing for consumersand businesses more expensive across a range of loans, including home and auto loans, credit cards and business borrowing. The goal has been to cool inflation by slowing spending and hiring.

Last year, the Fed jacked up its benchmark rate at a breakneck pace, including by three-quarters of a point on four occasions. Now, with year-over-year inflation having eased from9.1% a year ago to 4%, Powell has indicated that the Fed wants to move much more slowly.

A slower pace of rate increases, Powell has said, could help the Fed achieve a tricky feat: Weaken the economy enough to tame inflation, without undermining it so much as to cause a deep recession.

Yet on Wednesday, Powell repeated a warning he has often made: Defeating inflation wont be painless.

Reducing inflation is likely to require a period of below-trend growth and some softening of labor market conditions, he said.

Softer labor market conditions would include rising layoffs and a higher unemployment rate. Fed officials, though, have said they hope to curb inflation mainly by reducing the number of open jobs rather than through mass layoffs.

Cutting demand for workers would allow employers to slow their wage increases, thereby helping keep a lid on inflation.

Last week, 12 of the 18 Feds policymakers indicated that they envision at least two more rate hikes this year, and four predicted one additional increase. Only two officials forecast that the central bank will keep its key rate at its current level of 5.1% through years end.

Sports

Cal Raleigh Home Run Watch: After hitting No. 58 on Sunday, will the Big Dumper reach 60?

Published

40 mins ago

September 22, 2025

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Cal Raleigh Home Run Watch: After hitting No. 58 on Sunday, will the Big Dumper reach 60?

Sep 21, 2025, 08:00 PM ET

The Big Dumper just left the yard again!

In what has become a regular occurrence during Cal Raleigh‘s incredible 2025 season, the Seattle Mariners catcher added another home run to his 2025 total on Saturday — passing another MLB legend in the process — followed by one more on Sunday night.

Raleigh has already surpassed the record for home runs by a catcher and by a switch-hitter and set a Mariners franchise record, and who could forget his Home Run Derby triumph earlier this summer?

What record could Raleigh set next, how many home runs will he finish with and just how impressive is his season? We’ve got it all covered.

Raleigh must-reads: Raleigh’s road to homer history | Surprising 50-HR seasons | Best power half-seasons in MLB history

Raleigh’s current pace

Raleigh is now at 58 home runs and on pace for 60 with seven games left.

The American League record is 62, set by Aaron Judge in 2022, and there have been only nine 60-home run seasons in MLB history.

Who Raleigh passed with his latest home run

With his 58th home run on Sunday night, Raleigh moved past Luis Gonzalez and Alex Rodriguez on the all-time single-season home run list. With No. 57 the night before, Raleigh surpassed Ken Griffey Jr.’s Mariners franchise record of 56 — a number Griffey reached twice — in the 1997 and 1998 seasons.

Raleigh has joined Griffey as the only Mariners with 50 home runs (or even 45) in a season. Raleigh is also the first Seattle slugger with 40 homers in a season since Nelson Cruz in 2016.

Who Raleigh can catch with his next home run

After passing Mickey Mantle, Griffey and A-Rod with his most recent blasts, the next big question for Raleigh is if he can get to No. 60. But he is already in rare company as No. 59 would move him past Jimmie Foxx and Hank Greenberg on the all-time single-season home run list.

Raleigh’s 5 most impressive feats of 2025

Most home runs in a season by a switch-hitter

With his 55th home run, Raleigh knocked Mickey Mantle, who hit 54 in 1961, from the top spot. Breaking Salvador Perez‘s record of 48 home runs by a primary catcher understandably got a lot of attention, but beating Mantle’s mark is arguably more impressive given how long the record stood and the Hall of Famer’s stature.

One of the best months ever for a catcher

In May, Raleigh hit .304/.430/.739 with 12 home runs and 26 RBIs. Only four catchers have hit more home runs in a calendar month and only eight with at least 100 plate appearances produced a higher slugging percentage. Raleigh was almost as good in June, hitting .300/.398/.690 with 11 home runs and 27 RBIs, giving him two-month totals of .302/.414/.714 with 23 home runs and 53 RBIs. In one blazing 24-game stretch from May 12 to June 7, Raleigh hit .319 with 14 home runs.

Reaching 100 runs and 100 RBIs

Raleigh is sitting on 107 runs scored while leading the American League with 121 RBIs. Only eight other primary catchers have reached 100 in both categories in the same season — Mike Piazza did it twice, in 1997 and 1999, and he and Ivan Rodriguez were the last catchers to do it in ’99. Of the other catchers, seven are in the Hall of Fame (Piazza, Rodriguez, Mickey Cochrane, Yogi Berra, Roy Campanella, Johnny Bench and Carlton Fisk). The lone exception is Darrell Porter, who reached the milestone with the Royals in 1979.

Tying Ken Griffey Jr.’s club record for home runs

Griffey hit 56 home runs for the Mariners in 1997 and 1998, leading the AL both seasons and winning the MVP Award in 1997 (he and Ichiro Suzuki in 2001 are Seattle’s two MVP winners). Griffey had the advantage of playing in the cozy confines of the Kingdome in those years, although his home/road splits were fairly even. Raleigh, however, has had to play in a tough park to hit in, with 30 of his 56 home runs coming on the road, where his OPS is about 100 points higher. That marks only the 19th time a player has reached 30 road homers (by contrast, 30 homers at home has been accomplished 37 times).

An outside shot at most total bases by a catcher

With 337 total bases, Raleigh’s 2025 campaign is already one of only 20 catcher seasons with 300 total bases (yes, time at DH has helped him here). The record is 355, shared by Piazza in 1997 and Bench in 1970 (both played 150-plus games in those seasons). Raleigh would need a strong finish to get there but could at least move into third place ahead of Perez’s 337 total bases in 2021. Not counted in Raleigh’s total bases: his 14 stolen bases!

UK

UK to push peace plan at UN summit after recognising Palestinian state – but Netanyahu says Palestine ‘will not happen’

Published

40 mins ago

September 22, 2025

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UK to push peace plan at UN summit after recognising Palestinian state - but Netanyahu says Palestine 'will not happen'

The UK is set to push for a peace plan for the Middle East at the UN General Assembly after recognising the state of Palestine.

Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper is expected to use the summit to address civilian suffering in war-torn Gaza and aim to strengthen “the international consensus on our pathway for peace in the Middle East”.

She will hold bilateral meetings to advance elements of the peace plan, including security measures to ensure Hamas has no role in the future governance of Gaza, according to the Foreign Office.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, who won’t attend the summit, announced on Sunday that the UK recognises Palestine as an independent state, to “revive the hope of peace for the Palestinians and Israelis, and a two-state solution”.

It is a significant moment in the history of Britain’s involvement in the region, and comes as the number of people killed during the Gaza conflict continues to rise and conditions for the people trapped become even more desperate.

Australia, Canada and Portugal made similar announcements, with France expected to follow suit at the UN on Monday.

The move was met with fierce backlash by Israel, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying it was “absurd” and a “huge reward to terrorism”. He also vowed that a Palestinian state “will not happen”.

Separately, an Israeli official said the “full or partial annexation of the West Bank” is now “an option under consideration in response” to the move.

US President Donald Trump also addressed the coordinated recognition of the state of Palestine by the UK, Australia, Canada and Portugal, saying “I’m not in that camp” because recognising a Palestinian state was “rewarding Hamas”.

The families of hostages held in Gaza called it a “betrayal of humanity and a move that rewards Hamas while 48 hostages remain in captivity”.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said the recognition of the state of Palestine would allow it to “live side by side with the State of Israel in security, peace, and good neighbourliness”.

Senior Hamas official Mahmoud Mardawi reportedly celebrated the move as a victory for “the justice of our cause”.

But Sir Keir was clear to emphasise that recognition of Palestine was “not a reward for Hamas”, saying the terror group “can have no future, no role in government, no role in security” in a future state and confirming plans to ratchet up sanctions on Hamas “in the coming weeks”.

“Our call for a genuine two-state solution is the exact opposite of their hateful vision,” he added.

The prime minister also repeated his criticism of Israel, which for nearly two years has waged war on the densely populated Gaza Strip.

“The Israeli government’s relentless and increasing bombardment of Gaza, the offensive of recent weeks, the starvation and devastation are utterly intolerable,” he said.

The number of people killed in Gaza since the IDF launched its offensive following the 7 October attacks has now risen above 65,000, according to Hamas-run health authorities.

“This death and destruction horrifies all of us. It must end,” Sir Keir said.

In recognising Palestine as a state, the UK does so based on 1967 borders to be finalised as part of future negotiations. It would be led by a “reformed Palestinian Authority”.

The UK also acknowledges “all legal rights and obligations of statehood” for Palestine.

An updated map on the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office website now has the West Bank and Gaza labelled as ‘Palestine’ rather than the ‘Occupied Palestinian Territories’. This change has been rolled out across the website.

Sports

Raleigh’s 58th HR fuels Mariners’ sweep of Astros

Published

2 hours ago

September 22, 2025

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Raleigh's 58th HR fuels Mariners' sweep of Astros

ESPN News Services

Sep 21, 2025, 08:20 PM ET

HOUSTON — Seattle Mariners star Cal Raleigh hit his MLB-leading 58th home run on Sunday night, a two-run shot in the second inning against the Houston Astros.

The Mariners were up 5-0 after a grand slam by J.P. Crawford in the second when Raleigh, who was batting left-handed, connected off Jason Alexander for his home run to right field to extend the lead.

The shot came a night after Raleigh passed Ken Griffey Jr. for the franchise’s single-season home run record with his 57th. Griffey hit 56 in 1997 and in 1998.

Raleigh also has surpassed Mickey Mantle‘s MLB record of 54 home runs by a switch-hitter that had stood since 1961. And Raleigh has set the MLB record for homers by a catcher this season, eclipsing the 48 hit by Salvador Perez in 2021.

Raleigh is five home runs ahead of Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani and Philadelphia Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber, who are tied for second place with 53 apiece.

The Mariners won 7-3 to complete a three-game sweep that gave them a three-game lead in the American League West over the Astros with six remaining.

Seattle, which has won four straight and 14 of 15, holds the second AL playoff seed by two games over AL Central-leading Detroit, which has dropped six in a row. The Mariners, looking to win the AL West for the first time since 2001, finished 8-5 against the Astros this season.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.