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Fed meeting notes potential impact of Trump policy raises inflation concerns

Federal Reserve policymakers said at a meeting about a week after Trump's inauguration on January 20 that Trump's initial policy recommendations raised concerns about rising inflation at the central bank. According to published meeting notes, participants "generally pointed to upside risks to the inflation outlook" rather than risks to the job market. "Participants specifically cited potential changes in trade and immigration policy, the potential for geopolitical developments to disrupt supply chains or the impact of stronger-than-expected household spending." While participants remained confident that price pressures would continue to ease, "other factors were seen as likely to impede the disinflationary process", the meeting notes, including "some [Fed] regional business contacts indicating that companies will try to pass on higher input costs from potential tariffs to consumers". Participants also noted that some measures of inflation expectations, a key concern for the Fed, had "recently risen".