Fed´s Harker sees three interest rate hilkes in 2017
A top US central bank official expressed support for up to three more interest rate hikes in 2017.
The president of the Federal Reserve bank of Philadelphia, Patrick Harker, also said inflation would hit the monetary authority´s target in 2017 or 2018 and called for measures to adress the decline in the labour force participation rate.
In remarks prepared for a speech to a business group in Pennsylvania, Harker said that: "the economy is displaying considerable strength [...]."
"I see three modest hikes as appropriate for the coming year, assuming the economy stays on track," said Harker.
Harker was a voting member of the Federal Open Market Committee in 2017.
Regarding the US labour market, the rate-setter said it was "more or less at full health".
However, he expressed dismay at the decline seen in the labour force participation rate.
Linked to the above, he observed that: "the kinds of policies that will deliver that growth — employment programs, development, taxation, and trade policy — is up to elected officials at the local, state, and national levels."
As of 1445 GMT, the yield on the benchmark 10-year US Treasury note was off by four basis points at 2.33%.