How Fed hikes could affect mortgages, car loans, card rates

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER
AP Economics Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — Will mortgage rates go up? How about car loans? Credit cards? How about those nearly invisible rates on bank CDs — any chance of getting a few dollars more? With the Federal Reserve signaling Wednesday that it will begin raising its benchmark interest rate as soon as March — and probably a few additional times this year — consumers and businesses will eventually feel it. The Fed’s thinking is that with America’s job market essentially back to normal and inflation surging well beyond the central bank’s annual 2% target, now is the time to raise its benchmark rate from near zero.