Citigroup: the Fed is expected to raise interest rates twice more and will not cut interest rates this year.

FAP, May 10 / PRNewswire-FirstCall-Asianet /-- Citigroup economist Johanna Chua believes that the Fed will raise interest rates two more times before finally completing the rate hike in July. "although there are some concerns about the banking turmoil, there has not been the credit crisis that people feared, and credit conditions have slowed and tightened, but not to a large enough extent. At the same time, we expect inflation to be quite persistent. " So she believes that, contrary to market pricing that the Fed will cut interest rates this year, Citi does not think it will do so until next year; the US economy is expected to contract in the fourth quarter.