>Nevertheless, many economists think that the Fed is tightening the
>benchmark interest rate in response to the strengthening labor
>market and rising wages. Employment growth may be weak but it is
>apparently enough to provoke the Fed.
Yeah, unemployment is low, but I suspect - and we probably won't know the truth for years - that the Fed is trying to burst the housing bubble and get US foreign accounts into better shape. And they're probably genuinely worried about the inflationary effects of the energy spike.
Doug