The Fed wants more proof that inflation is falling before cutting rates further

Many Federal Reserve officials want to see inflation fall further before backing additional interest rate cuts this year, particularly if the job market continues to stabilize, minutes of last month’s meeting show.

The “vast majority” of the 19 participants on the Fed’s rate-setting committee said there were signs that the job market had stabilized, after the unemployment rate rose in late 2025, according to the minutes. And most of the officials agreed that the Fed’s key rate is close to a level that neither stimulates nor restrains the economy. The minutes were released Wednesday, three weeks after the central bank’s Jan. 27-28 meeting.

Officials at that meeting agreed to keep the Fed’s key rate steady at about 3.6%, after cutting it three times late last year. Two officials—Fed Governors Stephen Miran and Christopher Waller—voted instead to cut another quarter-point.

The minutes underscored the deeply divided nature of the committee, with several camps emerging: Several officials said additional cuts will “likely be appropriate” if inflation continues to decline. But some officials favored keeping rates unchanged “for some time,” suggesting a longer pause. And several other officials said they could have supported language in the statement issued after the meeting that would signal the next move by the Fed could be either a cut or a rate hike, if inflation remains above their 2% target.

Read the full story from the Associated Press.