Wall Street Nearly Unanimous on U.S. Rate Hike Next Week: Poll

Wall Street’s top banks were nearly unanimous on the view the Federal Reserve will increase interest rates at its policy meeting next week following a stronger-than-forecast February U.S. payrolls report, a Reuters poll showed on Friday. A drop in unemployment, more people seeking jobs and a rebound in wage growth were other upbeat aspects of the report which economists at these top banks reckoned give the Fed a green light to raise rates by a quarter point to 0.75-1.00 percent.