Federal Reserve Expected To Raise Benchmark Rate

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve is widely expected to lift its short-term interest rate Wednesday for the first time in three years to fight stubbornly high inflation, a move that would put the central bank at odds with President Donald Trump’s demands. An increase in the Fed’s rate, currently about 3.6%, isn’t guaranteed but most analysts and economists expect a hike after a speech two weeks ago in which Fed Chair Kevin Warsh argued that the central bank had not yet achieved its goal of putting inflation in check.