As inflation surges, Fed to debate faster taper, earlier rate hikes

Strong enough: A shopper in a Manhattan store in New York City. The US economy has gained speed, with reports showing more than half a million jobs added in October and retail sales surging. — AFP

NEW YORK: Federal Reserve (Fed) policymakers are publicly debating whether to withdraw support for the US economy more quickly to deal with surging inflation, with one of the central bank’s most influential officials signalling last Friday that the idea will be on the table at the Fed’s next meeting.

It was just this month that the Fed decided the economy was strong enough to begin to trim its US$120bil (RM502bil) in monthly asset purchases, put in place earlier in the pandemic to push down on borrowing costs and boost the recovery. The plan would phase out all bond-buying by mid-2022.