Another small hike in US interest rates is seen as a certainty when Federal Reserve policy-makers meet on Wednesday - a step on the march toward a level of rates necessary to underpin long-term expansion .
Since policy-setting members of the Federal Open Market Committee began raising rates in June, they have edged up the bellwether federal funds rate, charged on overnight loans between banks, three times in quarter percentage point stages to 1.75 per cent.
There is virtually unanimous agreement among analysts that a matching incremental increase will be announced on Wednesday to bring the fed funds rate to two per cent and a growing consensus that will not mark the end nor even a pause in the rate-rise cycle.
"The reason for raising rates is that there is still an enormous adjustment to be made considering that we have an economy that is approaching its full potential," said economist Mr Richard DeKaser of National City Corp. in Cleveland. "At the same time, inflation is no longer declining and in fact has been rising and, in all likelihood, is back within the Fed's 'comfort zone' of 1.5 per cent to 2 per cent," he added.