Wall Street Journal (02/27/15) Michael S. Derby

U.S. Federal Reserve officials fanned out to drive home the message that they likely will increase short-term interest rates later this year, reinforcing chairman Janet Yellen’s remarks to Congress. Several central-bank policymakers said in recent days they could begin lifting rates around midyear or later. They largely agreed that recent robust job gains point in the direction of raising the short-term benchmark interest rate from near zero, while weak inflation favors a cautious approach. Meanwhile, the leaders of the Atlanta, St. Louis, and San Francisco Fed banks all expressed optimism about the economy and hailed what they see as genuine and robust improvements in the job market.