Fed Bumps Target Rate to 4%

The Federal Open Market Committee -- the monetary policy-making organ of the Federal Reserve Board -- has once again raised its target for the federal funds rate by 25 basis points, bringing it to 4%."Elevated energy prices and hurricane-related disruptions in economic activity have temporarily depressed output and employment," the FOMC said in a statement accompanying its decision. "However, monetary policy accommodation, coupled with robust underlying growth in productivity, is providing ongoing support to economic activity that will likely be augmented by planned rebuilding in the hurricane-affected areas. The cumulative rise in energy and other costs have the potential to add to inflation pressures; however, core inflation has been relatively low in recent months and longer-term inflation expectations remain contained." The Federal Reserve can be found on the Web at http://www.federalreserve.gov.