FEDERAL RESERVE WON NEAR-TERM INFLATION BATTLE – Bank of America chief executive forecasts interest rates are likely to stay higher 

The Federal Reserve has won the near-term battle against inflation, but interest rates are likely to stay higher for longer, Bank of America’s chief executive has said.

Consumer spending growth has slowed down from a year earlier, but the economy will avoid a recession, Brian Moynihan told the Economic Club of New York.

In the Fed’s latest forecasts, officials continued to pencil in one more rate hike for this year, and said they expect rates to be higher for longer given a stronger-than-expected economy.

Moynihan joined his counterparts in criticising proposed capital rules that banking executives say would curb lending to U.S. businesses and make the nation less competitive. Industry leaders and trade associations have been unusually vocal in their opposition to the draft standards.

The successful IPO of Softbank-backed Arm Holdings had raised hopes of a revival in capital-raising activities, but the company’s share price has fallen in recent days, briefly falling below its IPO price.