Fed’s Collins Signals Support for Slowing Pace of Interest Rate Increases

A Federal Reserve official signaled support Friday for continuing to raise interest rates but at a somewhat slower pace than the central bank has moved this year to avoid risks of too much tightening.

The Fed raised its benchmark federal-funds interest rate this week by 0.75 percentage point, or 75 basis points, at its fourth consecutive meeting to a level between 3.75% to 4%. That level is high enough to slow economic activity, and the question now is how much higher rates must go to sufficiently restrain demand to bring down inflation, said Boston Fed President Susan Collins in an interview Friday.