Fed officials getting worried about retreat in inflation, says minutes

Washington

FEDERAL Reserve policymakers appeared increasingly wary about recent weak inflation and some called for a halt to further interest rate hikes until it was clear the trend was transitory, according to the minutes of the central bank's last policy meeting.

The readout of the July 25-26 meeting, at which policymakers voted unanimously to keep rates unchanged, also showed the Fed increasingly ready to begin reducing its US$4.2 trillion portfolio of Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities.