Inflation is proving stickier than expected, which could cause Fed to hit pause button on more interest rate cuts.

Financial stocks had among the biggest gains among the S&P 500 ‘s 11 sectors in afternoon trading Wednesday, as shares of Citigroup Inc. and Wells Fargo & Co. each jumped more than 7%, according to FactSet data,

U.S. stocks were surging on Wednesday morning as Treasury yields fell after core inflation data came in below expectations, boosting bets that the Federal Reserve will still be able to cut interest rates this year.

The Federal Reserve will soon begin its quinquennial review of the monetary policy strategy, tools and communications employed to fulfill its congressional mandate.

Federal Reserve officials at their meeting Dec. 17-18 expected to dial back the pace of interest rate cuts this year in the face of persistently elevated inflation and the threat of widespread tariffs and other potential policy changes.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell has said the central bank will keep its key interest rate elevated until inflation is back to 2%. As a result, Wall Street investors expect the Fed to cut its key rate just a single time this year, from its current level of 4.3%, according to futures prices.

The effects of potential changes in trade and immigration policy suggested” restoring 2% inflation “could take longer than previously anticipated,” according to the Fed minutes released Wednesday.

The Dow fell 600 points on Friday morning after new job reports surpassed expectations, and the Federal Reserve indicated that interest rate cuts may be postponed. Additionally, inflation remains a concern and is anticipated to stay high.

The economy was expected to add 153,000 jobs last month, according to economists polled by financial-data firm FactSet. The unemployment rate ... kicking off a flurry of interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve to tame price increases.

The central bank said it had decided to leave the network after the group’s work “increasingly broadened in scope.”

Inflation is still there, according to the December Consumer Price Index (CPI) report, with the annual rate marginally increasing to 2.9%. With economic uncertainty looming, concerns have been raised regarding the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy as core inflation,

The U.S. Federal Reserve will hold interest rates steady on Jan. 29 and resume cutting in March, according to a slim majority of economists polled by Reuters, as policymakers digest an expected barrage of new economic policies from Washington.