WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve is poised this week to discuss when it will take its first steps toward dialing back its ultra-low interest rate policies. It will be a fraught discussion, one likely to occur over several months. Yet the escalating inflation that has forced consumers and businesses to pay more has intensified pressure on the Fed to consider pulling back soon on the extraordinary support it’s provided through low borrowing rates. With the economic picture still clouded by the chaos of reopening from the recession, no major decisions are expected Wednesday when the Fed’s latest policy meeting ends and Chair Jerome Powell holds a news conference.
