Warsh and FOMC Colleagues May Hike Rates Despite Inflation Report

The August inflation report has been released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, but according to Fed Chair Kevin Warsh and his Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) colleagues, it may not be a deciding factor in their decision for the September 16 FOMC meeting.

The FOMC's preferred inflation gauge is the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index, which has been running at 3.7% and 3.3% for core PCE inflation over the past two months. This rate is nearly double the Fed's 2% target.

Fed Chair Warsh has emphasized that price stability is his top priority, and the central bank may not be done fighting inflation yet. In a recent speech, he mentioned that better price readings have not convinced him that the trend is improving.