Fed could raise rates

The US Federal Reserve is not ruling out raising rates by half a percentage point if inflation remains high, Fed official Raphael Bostic said in an interview with the Financial Times.

The chair of the US central bank, Jerome Powell, signaled this week the Fed plans to hike interest rates in March, telling reporters the recovery in the world's largest economy is strong enough that it can handle higher borrowing costs.

Powell declined to give details on the size of the planned increase, saying only that the Fed would be flexible. It typically raises rates by a quarter of a percentage point; a half-point increase would be uncommon.