The outlook for inflation — and for Fed rate hikes to counter the threat — continues to push higher.
The CNBC Fed Survey sees little chance for a hike at May’s two-day meeting, which begins Tuesday, but an 86 percent chance that the Fed will hike in June.
The 37 respondents to the survey — economists, fund managers and strategists — are split over whether the Fed will hike an additional two or three times after June. About 46 percent of respondents see two more in 2018 and the same percentage see three.
“Strong economic momentum and accelerating price and wage gains should lead to three more Fed rate hikes this year,” Kathy Bostjancic, head of U.S. macro investor services at Oxford Economics USA, wrote in response to the survey.
For 2019, the median is for two hikes, but most of the risk looks to be with more rates rises. Forty-three percent forecast either three or four hikes next year.
