UBS Global Wealth Management expects the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates by 25 basis points in September 2026 and again in December, reversing its earlier forecast for unchanged policy this year. Macquarie also expects a September increase, followed by another quarter-point move in the first quarter of 2027. Wharton finance professor Jeremy Siegel said the Fed would already be hiking after August payrolls increased by 162,000, but pressure from President Donald Trump and the 2026 midterm elections makes a September move politically difficult. The unemployment rate held at 4.1%, annual wage growth was 3.1%, labor-force participation rose to 61.6%, and June and July payrolls were revised up by a combined 55,000. UBS cited resilient employment, hawkish Fed communication and supply-bottleneck inflation risks, while Siegel described the labor market as supply-driven rather than overheated and cited roughly 10% M2 money-supply growth since the brief U.S.-Iran war began. Futures implied roughly a 58% chance of a September hike, up from 52% before the jobs report. Higher expected rates could support Treasury yields and the dollar, increase the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding Bitcoin and keep financial conditions restrictive. Bitcoin traded near $79,375 on September 7. Producer and consumer price data due Thursday and Friday, including August CPI due September 11, are the next major policy signals before the September 15-16 FOMC meeting.