Fed vice-chair: interest rate increase is 'expectation, not commitment' for 2015

Federal Reserve moves to hinge on economic developments amid 'considerable uncertainties' in exports, investment and job growth, says Stanley Fischer

Federal Reserve policymakers are still likely to raise interest rates this year, but that is "an expectation, not a commitment" and could change if the global economy pushes the US economy further off course, Fed vice-chairman Stanley Fischer said.

"Both the timing of the first rate increase and any subsequent adjustments to the federal funds rate target will depend critically on future developments in the economy," Fischer told a group on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund meeting in Peru.