Fed Officials Say Sense Of Financial Stability Cleared Path For Rate Hike

Federal Reserve officials on Friday said there was no indication financial stress was worsening as they gathered at a policy meeting this week, a fact that allowed them to stay focused on lowering inflation with another interest rate increase.

In separate appearances, three regional Fed bank presidents said they ultimately concluded that the March 10 collapse of Silicon Valley Bank along with other developments did not undermine confidence in the strength of the U.S. banking system as a whole, with one dismissing the California-based lender's failure as not relevant to how other banks are managed.

"It was a quirky situation," St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said in comments to a St. Louis community group.