Federal Reserve officials have raised concerns about high inflation in the United States, though some have said there is not yet an "emergency" to raise interest rates again. John Williams, president of the New York Federal Reserve, said the Fed can wait before raising interest rates again to combat inflation, noting that a rate increase might become necessary "by the end of the year." He mentioned that given the monetary policy decision made at the September meeting, which included a quarter-point rate increase, there is no urgent need to act, and time is available to gather more information. Williams added that another increase in the key interest rates could be appropriate by the end of the year to bring inflation back to the target of 2% within a more reasonable timeframe. Michael Barr, a Fed governor, said earlier in the day that "inflation is too high" and that further monetary policy adjustments will likely be necessary to bring inflation back to the target within a reasonable timeframe, though he did not specify a schedule. The Fed is monitoring the PCE inflation index, which was rising by 3.7% in July, well above its target of contained price increases at 2%. The figures for August will be published on Wednesday. The last monetary policy meeting of 2026 will take place six weeks later, at the beginning of December. Investors had previously expected the U.S. central bank to continue tightening its policy at its next meeting, at the end of October, according to the CME FedWatch monitoring tool. U.S. interest rates, which guide borrowing costs, are currently between 3.75% and 4%. The U.S. 10-year Treasury bond rate, the global benchmark for the bond market, rose to 5.27% on Tuesday, its highest level since 2007.