【英语财经】美联储官员不排除6月加息 Fed leaves window open for June rate rise?

Federal Reserve policymakers opened up the option of lifting short-term interest rates at their next meeting in June, even as many cautioned that a number of economic hurdles lie in the way of another rise. as they gauge when they are confident enough to pull the trigger.

Minutes from the central bank’s April rate-setting meeting showed that most policymakers believed a rise would be “appropriate” at the June meeting if the economic data and job market conditions continue to strengthen as inflation heads towards the 2 per cent target.

However several participants also said they were concerned that the economic signals may not be clear enough by the time of the June 14-15 meeting.

Among the overseas risks which could weigh against a rate rise was the UK referendum on its membership of the European Union, which could cause market jitters as the Federal Open Market Committee gathers next month.

US stocks gave up their gains and the dollar strengthened after the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s April monetary policy setting meeting showed officials opened up the options of lifting short-term interest rates as early as next month.

Fed policymakers have been weighing the merits of a second increase in short-term interest rates following their quarter-point rise in December of last year. With Janet Yellen, the Fed chair, stressing her desire for a cautious approach to policymaking, many investors have been dubious that the central bank will follow through with another move as soon as June.

美联储(Fed)的政策制定者们开启了在6月下次议息会议上提高短期利率的可能性，即便他们中的多人告诫称，在下一次加息之前还有多个经济障碍。他们正在掂量自己何时能够具有支持加息的信心。

这家美国央行4月议息会议的纪要显示，大多数政策制定者认为，随着通胀水平朝着2%的目标迈进，如果经济数据和就业市场状况继续走强的话，6月加息将是“合适的”。

但几位参与者也表示，他们担心，到6月14至15日召开议息会议时，经济信号可能还不够明确。

英国将围绕是否脱离欧盟(EU)举行公投，这是可能不利于美联储加息的海外风险之一。当联邦公开市场委员会(FOMC)下月开会时，英国脱欧公投的结果可能正在造成市场动荡。

由于美联储4月议息会议纪要表明美联储官员保留了下月就提高短期利息的选择，美国股市回吐了涨幅，美元开始走强。

继去年12月加息25个基点以来，美联储的政策制定者们一直在权衡第二次加息的利弊。由于美联储主席珍妮特?耶伦(Janet Yellen)强调她希望在政策制定方面采取谨慎做法，许多投资者一直不太相信美联储在6月就会再次加息。

译者/邢嵬