The Rise of Interest Rates

When reviewing the current environment for interest rates, almost all analysts are in agreement that they will continue to rise in the future.  Short term interest rates, which in recent years were at historically low levels, have already risen. The Federal Reserve has already increased rates once this year, and at the end of a 2-day policy meeting, on May 2, the Federal Reserve decided unanimously to hold interest rates steady at the target range of 1.5 to 1.75%.  Their notes said this decision was based on inflation recently moving close to the U.S. Central Bank’s target and that, “on a 12-month basis is expected to run near the Committee’s 2% objective over the medium term.”(Source: reuters.com 5/2/2018)