US Federal Reserve officials' concerns about inflation being stoked by the Iran war intensified last month, with a growing number open to a possible rate hike, in a sign that incoming chair Kevin Warsh will inherit an increasingly hawkish crew of central bankers.
A majority of Fed policy makers at their April 28-29 meeting felt "some policy firming would likely become appropriate" if inflation stays persistently above the US central bank's 2.0 per cent target, according to minutes of the meeting released on Wednesday.
"To address this possibility, many participants indicated that they would have preferred removing the language from the post-meeting statement that suggested an easing bias regarding the likely direction of the Committee's future interest rate decisions," minutes of the meeting said.
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