BNP Paribas economist Mateos y Lago said the U.S. economy might require three Federal Reserve interest-rate increases, potentially starting as soon as next week, despite the prevailing expectation that rates will remain unchanged. The federal funds rate is currently 3.50% to 3.75%, while the effective rate is 3.63%. Prediction markets raised the probability of a hike at the September 15-16 meeting to 59.5% from 54% 24 hours earlier, with October odds also increasing. Markets are now focused on the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), inflation data, economic indicators and comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell and other officials for clues about the policy path.