The US Federal Reserve (Fed) announced this Wednesday that it will accelerate the reduction of monthly emergency purchases, which is due to end in March. However, the bank signaled three benchmark interest rate hikes already next year, to respond to skyrocketing inflation.

So the central bank will be buying $60 billion of bonds per month starting in January, which will represent a $30 billion cut from December's purchases - double the $15 billion it had announced in November. According to the Fed, next year will bring further cuts in purchases.

In this sense, once it ends the program, which should happen in March, the Fed will start raising interest rates, which were held at historic lows - between 0% and 0.25% - at the two-day meeting that ended this Wednesday. Fed committee members project three rate hikes next year, which will be accompanied by two adjustments in 2023 and another two in 2024.

In other words, over the next three years, the Fed is expected to raise interest rates seven times, according to the so-called dot plot projections.

"The abrupt reversal in monetary policy is intended to address concerns about escalating prices, which will be more persistent than initially anticipated," Fed explains.

However, the authorities forecast inflation to reach 2.6% next year, compared to the 2.2% projected in September, and the unemployment rate to retreat to 3.5%.