Why another high inflation report may not cause Fed to hike

The government inflation report being released Tuesday is expected to show that price acceleration in the United States remained chronically high in February, putting the Federal Reserve in an unusually tough position. The Fed had been considered sure to raise its benchmark interest rate by at least a quarter-point when it meets next week. Many analysts even expected an aggressive half-point hike if Tuesday’s report for February pointed again to elevated inflation. But that was before last weekend’s two major bank failures and a series of emergency measures that the Fed unveiled to try to bolster confidence in the financial system.