Fed officials debated rate increases and recession risks in March.

Several Federal Reserve officials considered pausing interest rate increases until it was clear the failure of two regional banks would not cause wider financial stress, but ultimately agreed to a quarter-percentage-point rate increase due to high inflation remaining a priority. The officials weakened their commitment to further rate hikes, dropping the stated need for "ongoing increases" from the policy statement in favor of saying only that "some further" tightening would likely be needed.