Most American economists expect the Federal Reserve to
raise interest rates once more in December and begin unwinding its 4.5
trillion US dollars balance sheet in September, according to a survey
conducted by the Wall Street Journal on Thursday.
Economists
also expect the US central bank to raise interest rates three times in
2018, a view that matches the Fed's own projections. "Labor market
strength and continued economic growth will keep the Fed on course with
gradual rate hikes," said Scott Anderson, chief economist at Bank of the
West.
On Wednesday, Chicago Fed leader, Charles
Evans said the central bank could hold off on raising rates at the
September meeting and instead begin winding down its balance sheet.
(Chicago Fed leader Charles Evans)
In
June, the Fed raised the benchmark interest rates for the fourth time
since December 2015 and unveiled a plan to trim its holdings of US
Treasury bonds and other mortgage-backed securities later this year.
The
Fed's balance sheet has ballooned to around 4.5 trillion US dollars
following three rounds of quantitative easing programs to withstand the
impact of the 2008 global financial crisis.